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MU student severely injured while helping wrecked motorist

January 25, 2008 @ 11:33 PM

BILL ROSENBERGER

The Herald-Dispatch

MILTON -- Ami Boslaugh was on her way to class at Marshall University on Tuesday morning when the snow started falling, quickly making Interstate 64 slick and hazardous.

Boslaugh was talking on the phone with her dad when she saw a SUV that had slid off the road on its side. She told her father there was an accident, and she was stopping to help.

The next phone call her dad and mom received was from St. Mary's Medical Center. Boslaugh had been brought into the emergency room with multiple fractures to her hip, tailbone and back.

While Boslaugh was standing on the side of the interstate calling 911, another driver lost control of his car, hit the back of the wrecked SUV, then hit Boslaugh, throwing her into the air.

Her injuries are serious but not life-threatening. However, doctors said her hip is so badly fractured they are sending her to Ohio State Medical Center for surgery. Her parents were told Boslaugh could be in a wheelchair for at least six months, maybe longer, combined with a long regimen of rehabilitation.

Her parents aren't upset with their daughter for stopping in conditions that were less than ideal. They said her kind and caring heart dictated that she stop.

That was the sentiment expressed by coworkers at Blenko Glass, where Boslaugh is interning as a graphic artist. Office Manager Christy Gibson said Boslaugh is just a giving person.

"It did not surprise me at all when her boyfriend called and told me (about how the accident happened)," Gibson said. "She'd help anybody that asked."

Boslaugh's talents at Blenko have produced T-shirts, ads, a brochure and a new catalog.

"She's really good at what she does," Gibson said.

What's more, Boslaugh didn't graduate from high school. Her mom, Terry Boslaugh, said her daughter got her GED, enrolled in college and was expected to graduate cum laude from Marshall in May. Terry Boslaugh said university officials have told her they'll work with the family to make sure Boslaugh graduates and participates in the ceremony.

Gibson and Boslaugh's coworkers filled a Blenko vase with flowers and delivered it to her. Even though they know she has a long recovery, Gibson said she has an open door to return or work from home if she wants.

Photo courtesy of T. Boslaugh

Ami Boslaugh was severely injured Tuesday morning while helping a wrecked motorist on I-64.