Every year for my birthday I plan a series of events for my friends and I. Sept. 16 marked my 26th birthday. This year I decided to plan a trip to Vegas with my boyfriend the week of my birthday, and the previous weekend I was going to my home state Virginia to celebrate with my friends.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned.
It was the weekend of Sept. 8 when I arrived in Virginia to celebrate my birthday. On Friday, I went to get my nails done along with my best friend Jill. Ebony and Ronecia, my two friends from Baltimore, came down to celebrate with me as well. We attended a club in Virginia Beach called Origami that Friday and everything went well.
On Saturday, we were all excited about the festivities for the day. My friends and I attended a happy hour at a TGI Fridays restaurant where we laughed and joked around. After leaving Fridays, we made a few stops before returned to Jill’s apartment, which was where we all were staying. We began to prepare for a night we thought was going to be perfect.
We arrived at my birthday party at this Virginia Beach club called Aura Lounge at 11 p.m. We had a few drinks and danced the night away. After the club shut down at ended around 2 a.m., we decided to take pictures and ordered some Waffle House to-go.
We were almost back at Jill’s place when a car sped out of nowhere and hit us head on.
Everything happened so quickly. My friend Ebony was the driver of our vehicle, Ronecia was the front passenger, and Jill and myself were the back passengers. As soon as the vehicle stopped after the impact I could hop out immediately and call for help.
The paramedics and police officers arrived quickly because several drivers called in the accident right when it happened. When the first responders arrived, I collapsed but I had no idea what was wrong with me, I just knew I was hurt. I was bleeding in my mouth, nose, face, and legs. I knew my right side of my body was damaged because I could barely move after a while.
The paramedics took me to Virginia Beach General Hospital where doctors stitched up this hole I had in my left leg. They also ran numerous of test on me, and found out my right hip was broken and I would be going into surgery that Monday at 6 a.m. I was nervous because I never broke a bone or had surgery before.
After my surgery the doctors told me that I would have to use a walker and I wouldn’t be able to bend or put weight on my right side for eight to 12 weeks. The news was devastating because the Morgan State University school semester had begun Aug. 21 and I knew I would be missing out on coursework over the next weeks.
This all happened because the other driver was drunk and speeding.
According to WAVY-TV 10 News, Carl Jordan Hylton, 37, was charged with DUI and maiming. Five people were injured, one critically and four with non-life threatening injuries. Hylton faced a Sept. 21 bond hearing.
My friend Ebony suffered from fluid in her stomach, Ronecia sprung her knee, Jill was in a coma and was dealing with memory issues, and I suffered from a broken hip and fractured face bone.
My recovery is almost done, I’m looking forward to attending classes again and going on my Vegas trip that I never could attend.
Gabby has since returned to class at Morgan State University.
http://wavy.com/2017/09/10/five-people-taken-to-hospital-after-head-on-crash-in-virginia-beach/
