Boulder Kills Driver: Mother Saves Family
In a heroic story of the day, a passenger guides a car to safety after a boulder kills the driver. Read more here and see how the passenger came to the rescue after the boulder struck. This is a tragic, yet heroic story for the day. A boulder killed a driver last Friday, leaving a mother …
In a heroic story of the day, a passenger guides a car to safety after a boulder kills the driver. Read more here and see how the passenger came to the rescue after the boulder struck.
This is a tragic, yet heroic story for the day. A boulder killed a driver last Friday, leaving a mother to steer her three young boys to safety.
Thomas Murphy of Kansas City, Mo was driving on Colorado Highway 82 on Friday with his three young sons and his wife, when a boulder the size of a briefcase fell on their sport utility vehicle. The boulder hit Thomas knocking him unconscious and injuring his 11-year-old son. The other two boys, ages 8 and 4, were not injured.
His wife tried to steer the car to safety, by shifting the car in neutral. The car came to a stop about a mile down the road.
The Murphy family had been vacationing in Pitkin County and was on its way back home when the heartbreaking accident happened.
Thomas was pronounced dead at the hospital. Ethan, the 11 year old injured, suffered abrasions to his right arm and a fractured orbital bone. He underwent surgery on Saturday and is expected to make a full recovery. The other two boys and their mother were not injured in the accident.
The family issued this statement in regards to Thomas’ death,
Tom Murphy was an awesome husband, dad and friend. His wife and kids were his passion. It was important to him to give back to the community — he supported many charities and cultural arts groups with his time and talent in Kansas City. He was a life-long University of Kansas Jayhawk fan.
His favorite place on the planet was Colorado. He came out to ski a few weekends every winter and returned every spring with his family for Spring Break. He brought his family back in August for an annual summer road trip.This past week he spent in Snowmass, via a stop in Boulder and a detour through Rocky Mountain National Park. In typical Tom style, the family vacation turned into a group of four families — 20 people enjoying the mountains: hiking, biking, white-water rafting and several rounds of golf.
Though gone in an instant, his generous spirit and fun-loving nature will live on in his family and friends.
Such a sad ending to a fun family vacation. Our condolences to the family.