MOOO!!! ?Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer? is a popular Christmas ditty that came out several years ago.
Susie Vera´s family may be singing that song to slightly different words following her harrowing experience about 7:45 p.m. Sunday.
As she was returning from Santa Fe, N.M., by way of Hereford with her husband, brother and sister-in-law, a large black cow wandered onto the highway about six miles south of Hereford.
?It came out of nowhere,? Mrs. Vera related, noting that her sister-in-law, Beatrice Martinez, was driving and that the impact at about 65 mph virtually ?locked the car (a 2000 Jeep Cherokee) down. It stopped like we hit a brick wall.
?The cow´s head caught the front end of the car and the impact also broke the taillights,? said Mrs. Vera, who didn´t think the animal flew over the car.
Her husband, Arthur, and brother, Joe Martinez, also were passengers in the vehicle.
?Beatrice and I got out of the car and were going to go to a nearby house for help. Arthur had knee replacement three months ago and still can´t get around very well.
?My brother had a flashlight and was using it to alert cars so they wouldn´t hit the cow. A car was coming from the south and swerved and stopped at the side of the road,? Mrs. Vera related.
?About that time, the cow jumped up and rammed that car and busted the driver´s side window, then he charged me. He was digging his hooves and put his head down. I moved from side to side but he would follow me, so I put both arms up to protect my head. He plowed into me and I fell down and the cow rolled on top of me.
?It was a horrible experience. I would never have thought I would get hit by a cow,? the 50-year-old grandmother of six related.
?If it hadn´t been for my brother, it would have killed me. As soon as I hit the ground, I jumped up, but my legs felt like spaghetti. I said, `Joe, I´m going down´ and I just fell like a sack of potatoes. I was real wobbly and the cow was charging me again but Joe kept blinding it with a flashlight and hitting it with his hat and hollering.?
The man from the nearby house helped Mrs. Vera to her feet. She had a hoofprint on her right leg, bruised ribs and many scratches.
DPS and Deaf Smith County sheriff´s deputies arrived at the scene and the enraged cow chased several other people before eventually being killed by several rifle shots.
An ambulance took Mrs. Vera to the Hereford hospital emergency room. The driver of the other rammed car had some broken glass that had to be removed from his eye.
?They said I had a hairline fracture of the ribs so they gave me some painkillers. They said they don´t wrap injured ribs anymore due to the possibility of getting pneumonia.?
The Veras called their daughter, Mona Vera, who came from Plainview with their foster son, Gilbert Sanchez, and picked them up about 10:30 p.m. Sunday.
Arthur Vera went back to Hereford Monday to retrieve the vehicle, which wouldn´t start again Sunday night, and saw the cow still lying beside the road.
?I never had even been in a wreck before,? said Mrs. Vera, who has been secretary to the Director of Alumni Services at Wayland for the past six years. Never had been in wreck before.
Mrs. Vera had a little more excitement this morning as she was headed for work. Her 2-year-old granddaughter, Meah Vera, locked the doors with the motor running before anyone else was in the car.
A locksmith came but couldn´t get the door open. However, after about 45 minutes, Meah, already in her car seat, rolled the electric window down.
Posted to MyPlainview: DECEMBER 09, 2003 13:04 CST
ŠPlainview Daily Herald 2003
Topic: ?It was a horrible.. I would never have thought I would get hit by a cow!" (Read 6184 times)