Emergency Crews free Nampa Woman Trapped in Vehicle
By Ben Fletcher
Idaho Press-Tribune
NAMPA -- Several Nampa residents witnessed a scary scene Friday morning when two cars collided near the intersection of Midland Boulevard and the Nampa-Caldwell Boulevard.
The accident occurred about 10 a.m. Friday. A station wagon crashed into a minivan with enough force to knock it over onto its side, trapping a Nampa woman beneath the wreckage.
A crowd waited with baited breath as Nampa firefighters used a mechanical knife to cut through the metal surrounding the windshield of the minivan. Onlookers cringed, seeing nothing but the woman's legs protruding from beneath the vehicle, a position she became trapped in after being partially ejected from the vehicle.
But within minutes that seemed more like hours to onlookers, fire fighters cut the woman free.
Family members who arrived at the scene were relieved when the woman, whom they identified as Olga Garcia of Nampa, was able to speak with emergency crews as she was transported to an ambulance.
Garcia, whom police believe was not wearing a seat belt, was taken to Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise, where she was later released, Nampa Police Cpl. Joe Ramirez said.
"I didn't want to look," said Rita Spalding, who arrived before fire fighters had removed Garcia. "It's my mom."
The driver of the station wagon -- whose name was not released by police Friday -- was wearing a seat belt and was transported with injuries from a deployed airbag.
Nampa firefighters and police and Canyon County Paramedics reached the scene in a instant, cordoning off a section of Midland.
"They all came in here like gang-busters," Jo Anne Miller of Nampa said. "It didn't take anybody long."
Miller was driving south on Midland, seconds behind the wagon. She didn't hear the collision, but she noticed something was wrong.
"I just saw a bunch of people jump from their cars," she said. "They were all on their cell phones."
Nampa Sgt. Ramirez said pre-liminary findings indicate a van, traveling north on Midland Boulevard, was struck by a wagon while making a left turn into the parking lot of several businesses including ABI Computer and Chicago Connection Pizza. The wagon was traveling south on Midland and had just passed though the intersection when the collision occurred.
"Because of the low center of gravity of the wagon it worked just like a wedge and forced the van over on its side," Ramirez said.
Garcia could be cited for failing to yield, Ramirez said.
Employees at ABI Computer, located next to Midland, were upset to find out the person being removed from the vehicle was the same lady who delivers tamales to local businesses -- Olga's Tamales.
"That sucks," Caldwell resident Eric Murphy said. "She's a really nice lady."
