BBBTV12 Serving Anderson, Roane, and Morgan Counties
ANDERSON COUNTY, Tenn. — An Anderson County woman is thankful to be alive after walking away uninjured from a dramatic rollover crash on Sulphur Springs Road Monday evening.
Shawnte Stansberry Whitaker was driving along a stretch of road near a railroad trestle when she was briefly blinded by the sun as she came around a curve. Her vehicle’s right front tire slipped off the shoulder and caught the edge of a trail road leading into the woods. The impact caused her Chevrolet Tahoe to overturn multiple times.
Despite the severity of the crash, Whitaker walked away without a single injury. “I was surrounded by airbags,” she said. “They didn’t hurt when they deployed, but they definitely protected me from the glass.”
Trapped inside the overturned vehicle, Whitaker tried to open the door, but it would only move a few inches. She then rolled down the window and was able to call for help. Two good Samaritans arrived at the scene and assisted her in safely exiting through the window. One man steadied her as she released her seatbelt, catching her as she slid out of the vehicle.
The men offered a blanket and a chair while helping her recover personal belongings from inside the SUV.
Whitaker credits her seatbelt, the vehicle’s airbag system, and the kindness of strangers for allowing her to walk away from what could have been a much more serious accident.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol has not yet released an official report on the incident. No other vehicles were involved.
