Steel beam stops inches from driver’s chest after crashing through truck in Michigan

A man in Michigan was driving a box truck last week when the unthinkable happened — a steel beam blasted through his windshield stopping mere inches from his chest.

Johnnie Lowe, 49, was driving down I-96 Thursday when he saw a steel beam fall out of the bed of a truck as it was switching lanes, the Detroit Free Press reported. He told the newspaper the beam did somersaults toward him.

“Then here it came,” he told the Free press. “It bounced my way, so I just put my arm up, put my hand on the back of the steering wheel, put my foot on the brake, eased the brake.”

The beam smashed through his windshield stopping only six inches from his chest, WDIV reported.

The steering wheel stopped the beam from impaling Lowe, according to CNN. Somehow he was able to pull over and call for help.

“I could feel my face was bleeding. Thank God, I had one little cut on my face, but I’m staring at a steel beam about half a foot from my chest,” he told the outlet.

Lowe had been traveling to pick up parts at DNC Logistics and called the owner of the company who thought for sure that Lowe was “pinned,” WDIV reported.

But after walking away largely unscathed, Lowe said he’s feeling fortunate.

“I’m one lucky man,” he told WDIV. “I feel like I should play the lottery.”

This story was originally published February 12, 2020 at 12:23 PM with the headline "Steel beam stops inches from driver’s chest after crashing through truck in Michigan."