LEE COUNTY, Fla. — This weekend is the Mothers Against Drunk Driving 5K run/walk. Participants will help bring awareness and education to the importance of keeping drunk drivers off our roadways.
A local mother who was hit by a drunk driver spoke with us Wednesday about what it was like to almost lose her son that day.
Tammie Haas said, "It changed my life within a matter of seconds."
On Aug. 8, 2019, she was with her young sons Kaden and Grayson when they were hit by a drunk driver on Palm Beach Boulevard and Tropic Avenue.
She said they were coming back from an open house where Grayson was supposed to start kindergarten and before she knew it, "Me and my youngest son who was behind me we were both knocked unconscious."
She crawled out the window to try to get to Grayson in the backseat and says her son was lifeless and she remembers falling to the ground with him in her arms.
All three were taken to the hospital but Grayson was in bad shape.
Her 5-year-old-son had to be airlifted to Tampa and underwent emergency surgery. He suffered numerous broken bones and internal injuries, including a bone that fragmented at the back of his eye.
During all of this, Tammie was told by Lee County deputies it could have been prevented. They told her the driver had been drinking.
"I was so angry for such a selfish act," she said. "You could’ve taken someone’s life. Those motherly instincts kicking in — I was just so angry.
"She was five times above the legal limit," said Haas.
Tammie says along with many prayers a miracle happened, and Grayson was able to walk out of the hospital just four days later.
It was a long recovery, but today Grayson is a thriving 8-year-old tearing up the baseball field. But that day still plays back to Tammie and her family.
She says it was the worst day of her life and that she had to drive past the scene of the crash for the longest time after the accident.
"There was still debris laying on the road," she recalled.
Haas is grateful to have her sons with her today and knows there are many people out there who do not share the same outcome after a horrific crash like this.
After the accident, Haas joined Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
The drunk driver in that crash got 3 years in prison and was recently released.
This is just one of many stories of people experiencing the effects of drunk driving which is why there's a push to come out to the MADD 5k Run/Walk this Saturday morning at JetBlue Park in Lee County.
