Father returns to Akron to discuss book about Ohio Turnpike crash in Streetsboro that claimed the life of his wife and left son in a wheelchair
A single phone call shattered life as
The call was from
Little did he know at the time, but his wife Susan had already died from injuries when her car was struck by a triple tractor-trailer at mile marker 190.5 in
Ed said he had no inkling anything was amiss before the call as he was eagerly awaiting the return of his family home to
They say time heals all wounds, but Ed would disagree.
Some 10 years have passed since the crash but the hole remains in his heart from the loss of his wife who grew up in
His son Matthew, who was 12 at the time of the crash, is permanently disabled with a traumatic brain injury.
And Ed's still angry.
He says he struggles with the what-ifs.
What if she had left earlier that day or even started later for the trek back home.
What if he had gone on the trip and had been behind the wheel.
What if the driver, who was later sentenced to prison, had pulled off at a truck stop and taken a nap instead of driving nearly 24 hours straight on just three hours of sleep.
It is the latter that haunts him most.
Since the crash, Ed has become an outspoken proponent for stricter rules governing hours allowed on the road by truck drivers and has pushed for requirements that safety measures be mandated in trucks to ensure drivers stay alert and awake behind the wheel.
He points out that his personal car has safety features that alert him if he is drifting out a lane and even brakes if he doesn't. These same measures are not found in most trucks.
"This just makes no sense that these safety features are not on an 80,000-pound missile that is traveling down the road," Ed said.
Since Susan's death, Ed points out an estimated 40,000 Americans have died in crashes involving commercial vehicles.
"That's 12 a day, every day," he said. "Every day.
"Chew on that for a while."
If these same grim numbers, he asserts were true for the airline industry not a single plane would still be in air.
"Planes would all be grounded."
Ed's story to right a wrong and care for his now disabled son caught the attention of an investigative reporter at a
The story continued as the community was moved by Ed's commitment to remain at the bedside of his sons: Peter, who was 16 at the time of the crash and suffered a broken pelvis, and Matthew who still requires constant care.
This constant vigil started in
When he couldn't be there, family members and volunteers kept the vigil.
"I didn't want him to wake up alone," Ed said.
Kuebler said this same steadfast dedication channeled its way not only for the continued care of Matthew after he woke up from the coma but also to lobby in
"I think I would have just curled up in ball of anger," the reporter for an
Ed's story of dealing with trauma and tragedy, Kuebler said, led him to pen a recently released book about it called "The Long Blink: The True Story of Trauma, Forgiveness and One Man's Fight for Safer Roads."
The two will be in
Ed says it is bittersweet to return to
The memories of the crash and its immediate aftermath will forever be connected to
After the crash, the family established a fund at the hospital to help families in need of financial help for therapeutic sessions insurance won't cover or they simply cannot afford.
Ed said Matthew struggles every day but he is still living his life to the fullest.
One thing, Ed said, he marveled at during the boys' time at Akron Children's was the animal therapy programs offered, including bedside visits by of all things a miniature horse.
This has since come full circle, Ed said, as one of Matthew's greatest joys now are his visits to ride therapy horses.
While he needs a lot of assistance to make this possible, Ed said, Matthew insists that he wants to someday trot on a horse.
"We will get there by hook or by crook," he said. "It might take a special harness connected to the ceiling but he will get to trot."
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(c)2019 the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio)
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