In The Blink of an Eye

After it happened, when people asked him about it, Freddie Jacobs would tell them that he couldn't remember the details, that it happened so fast. But the story of those ninety or so seconds was clear in the minds of bystanders on the street that day. It was rush hour at a busy intersection and pedestrians were walking to work en masse, a moving wall of bodies with a modicum of personal space for each individual.

The intersection was known to be a problem to the many that encountered it on their daily routes. The walk signals changed too quickly and when they did, pedestrians rushed to the safety of the sidewalk like a pack of frightened deer before the impatient drivers sped through four lanes wide. The mad dash was especially critical for the ones who were using the diagonal crosswalk.

The intersection was a nuisance for its frequent travelers, but a manageable one. For its infrequent visitors, it is a new experience when they are coralled into the wave of people and ushered and pushed across to the other side. On the day in question, one of these newcomers, a young woman, Kelly Dwyer, was squeezed out of the flood of flesh that rushed to the curb. When the lights changed, she stood dazed and alone in the middle of the street, a fleet of cars converging on her like a stampede of steel beasts.

The red lights became green for the cars, evoking an instinctual acceleration response in the drivers. Removed from direct physical contact in their vehicles, they became a mob, honking and swerving to avoid Kelly. Her tentative attempts to cross were repeatedly repelled by cars that would narrowly miss her. A crowd of onlookers gasped at each close encounter.

Witnesses said that a man, later identified as Freddie Jacobs, broke free from the crowd and raced into the street, nimbly dodging cars like a real-life version of Frogger. He reached the young woman and urged her to follow him, but she was cemented in place, too scared to move. Kelly would later say that she did not remember when the man came to her. She was facing away from the oncoming traffic, afraid to watch. Freddie recalled that it felt like she was looking straight through.

Seconds afterwards, everyone heard the loud urgent horn blasts of a braking car that was barreling towards the man and woman. It was at this point in time that Freddie said lost account of the details. Witnesses said that with mere moments to react, he wrapped his arms around her, and spun around so that his back was facing the car. When it struck, Freddie absorbed most of the impact. It hit him around the back of the knees and lifted both him and Kelly up into the air. His back rode up on the hood and when the car finally stopped with a shudder, they were thrown forward. He somehow braced the fall with one arm with the other one still wrapped around Kelly to prevent himself from landing on top of her and they rolled several yards before coming to a stop.

Kelly said that she had her eyes closed the whole time and when she opened them, he was propped up in a pushup position above her asking her if she was okay in between gasps for breath. Before she could respond, he passed out on top of her.