My Extraordinary Fryday

Friday 26 August 2005

"Oh no!"

With our taxi crawling to a halt, there was little we could do but groan at the line of cars before us on the ECP. My exasperation soon morphed into horror as I caught sight of a bright image juxtaposed against the dark of the night. Hungry flames devoured a car ahead.












(This is not the actual scene.)

We've watched countless scenes of exploding vehicles but none could match the surreal drama unfolding before our eyes. Neither were we prepared for this chilling encounter. Thoughts ran wild and flailing arms of a struggling burn victim plagued my mind. Gripped with fear, I prayed that the damage would be confined to the car. The fire brigade soon arrived and doused the flames from which billowing smoke was arising. By this time, our taxi had inched its way past the blazing car. I shielded myself from witnessing the proximity of this situation as we pulled away.

I remembered the story of Jacqueline Saburido, an attractive young girl who was hit by a car. She was caught in the burning car and her body was heavily burnt for 45 seconds. Her touching story can be read here:
http://groups.northwestern.edu/nightcrawlers/story2.html
















Hopefully, the fate of the nameless, faceless stranger on the ECP does not parallel Jacqueline's.