So Much For A Silent night!
Abbey and her family had a lucky escape...
It was 18 September...just an ordinary day. My partner Danny, 25, had just gone to bed, while was in the bathroom about to have a shower before joining him.
But as I’d just got undressed, I heard our 1-year-old Elliot-ray crying from his room.
‘Do you want me to get him?’ I heard Danny call from our bedroom.
‘It’s OK, I’ll go!’ I called back.
Wrapping a towel around me, I closed the bathroom door and padded along to Elliot’s bedroom. But just as I walked towards him...
KABOOM!
I suddenly heard an ear-shattering bang that shook the whole house, then the teeth-jangling screech of metal scraping on metal.
It was coming from the bathroom where I’d been standing just seconds earlier.
‘A bomb!’ my mind raced. I felt my throat go dry and my legs turn to jelly.
Dear God, was our house about to blow up?
Screaming, I scooped Elliot up into my arms, clutching him to my chest.
Suddenly I heard violent thumping, like someone was trying to kick the front door in.
‘Abbey!’ I heard Danny scream at the top of his voice.
He’d been sitting in bed when the house-shaking bang had literally thrown him from the bed onto the floor. Hearing my scream, he’d thought I was still in the bathroom.
But when he’d tried to open the bathroom door, it was wedged shut.
So that violent thumping..?
That was Danny trying to kick the bathroom door in. ‘I’m here,’ I yelled from Elliot’s room.
Running in, Danny threw his arms around us.
‘We’ve got to get out,’ he panted.
Neither of us knew what was going on. We were living on pure adrenaline and instinct.
And our instincts were screaming, You’re in danger!
Quickly grabbing some warm clothes for me and Elliot, I scampered downstairs after Danny.
Elliot was still in my arms, screeching his head off.
When we made it outside, we found the front of the house in ruins, water spewing from the broken pipes.
You OK?!
When I looked up, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
A car was wedged between our first-floor bathroom window and the flyover that runs parallel to our housingassociation home.
The car must have gone out of control and veered off the road, only to plough into our bathroom window!
Neighbours rushed out to see what had happened. ‘Are you OK?’ they asked. Too shocked to speak, I couldn’t stop tears from falling.
Then, suddenly, we heard a sound above us.
Glancing up, I suddenly realised the driver of the car was still at the wheel. He looked elderly...and in shock.
So shocked that he started smiling, and tried to open the door of his car.
‘No, stay there!’ yelled a neighbour, ‘Help’s coming!’
The same neighbour had
The teethjangling screech of metal scraping on metal
dialled 999 and the police, ambulance and fire brigade soon arrived.
Firefighters secured the wrecked car before rescuing the old man from his seat, while we were checked over by medics.
Ambulance
While I was fine physically, Danny had internal bruising in his right hand, back and bottom, but hadn’t noticed due to the adrenaline rush.
My dad Neil soon arrived, as did Danny’s parents Chris, 49, and Mandy, 50.
‘Are you OK?’ asked Dad as he came running over to me.
‘I don’t know,’ I whispered, still reeling.
As an ambulance took the old man off to hospital with minor injuries, me, Danny and Elliot went to stay with my dad. But it was impossible to sleep.
Sobbing repeatedly through the long night, I felt overwhelmed by a crippling sense of fear, as if another crash was only moments away.
‘I can’t go back to that house,
I won’t feel safe there,’
I told Danny.
The next day, Danny returned to check the damage, while I waited at my dad’s house.
It was only then that I realised little Elliot had saved my life.
If he hadn’t started crying, I would’ve been in that bathroom when the car came crashing through the wall.
If it wasn’t for my baby, I’d be dead... ‘Mummy’s little hero,’ I cooed as I hugged Elliot tight.
Danny reported that £1,000 worth of our belongings were ruined beyond repair. But that’s the least of our worries. I still can’t sleep properly, jump whenever I hear cars go past the house.
And I freak out when I have to use the bathroom of a night.
Poor Danny is still taking painkillers for his injuries. Worse, Christmas is coming and we’re still in temporary council housing. It’s been almost three months now. I just want a new home where me and my family can feel safe.
New toys
If we’re still not housed in time, we’ll have to spend Christmas Day in our temporary accommodation. But we’d love to be in our home, building fun festive memories and shaking off the bad ones.
So, we’re trying to be positive, and splashing out on toys to make little Elliot smile.
And to get us in the mood, we’re planning to see Danny’s daughter from a previous relationship in her Christmas school play, as well as taking Elliot to visit Santa Claus.
A freak accident might have ruined our home but I’m determined it won’t ruin our Christmas.