10-Year-Old Girl Recounts Crash on Blanchette Bridge

There were two accidents last week on the Blanchette Bridge in . 

The involved a man from Troy, James Pace, who rear ended a semi-truck while that stopped for traffic on the bridge. He died on the scene. 

The other accident happened July 3 and involved a family of five from Wentzville and a man from Maryland Heights. The accident sent several people to the hospital, including 10-year-old Isabella Burzio-Roca. 

The Burzio-Roca family was riding in a GMC Yukon which was struck by the front of a truck driven by Ryan Merrifield of Maryland Heights. 

Both cars then struck the left concrete median barrier. The Yukon swerved to the right, crossed all the lanes of traffic and struck the right concrete barrier head on.

Paula Roca, who was in the Yukon, said in an email that each member of her family coped with the event in a different way.

"I was shocked and proud to find out that my 10-year-old Bella kept a diary of the happenings on her iPod, typing every 'fact' through her own eyes," Roca said.

Perhaps someday, Roca said, Isabella might become a journalist.

Here is Isabella's story, as told by her. 

The Accident

It all started on the trip to Michigan. My friend Caitlyne told me it was bad luck to breathe on a bridge.

Then this car in front of us got out of control and cut us off. After that all I remember was seeing a bright white light and that's when I thought I was done. I thought we had gone over and was waiting for water to leak into the car.

But then the light vanished and I saw we were still on the bridge. Then there was smoke coming out from the front of the car. My dad yelled GET OUT OF THE CAR NOW!

I looked around for my dog Pretzel (he's a stuffed animal), but the smoke started coming to the back of the car and I had to get out. I decided not to cry. I looked back at the car. The whole front was squished against the bridge wall. I couldn't take my eyes away.

Then I started to feel a burn under my shirt. I lifted it up and I saw two big scratches stretch across my stomach. It was like an animal attacked me. Then I started to see ambulances come to us. A fire fighter came to me.

I looked to my side and I saw a lady (who claimed to be a nurse) helping my mother and brothers. Lucca was beside me. He started to cry. I felt the bridge shake and I felt like it was going to collapse. But when the firefighter came to me he asked "what's your name?" I replied "Bella” and he asked me all different questions like: how old are you? How much do you weight? How tall are you? And then he put me on something that looked like a big yellow surf board.

Then he called over a few more firefighters. They both picked up the board and slid me onto a stretcher and then they put me into an ambulance and I asked the lady if I could sleep and she said "No you must stay awake". It was hard to stay awake but then they put on a neck brace.

I saw my mom wheeling into the same ambulance. Then they gave us a lot of shots but I still didn't cry. I could barely feel it. Then in about ten or five minutes we were in the hospital. They gave me a medicine called morphine. It helps the pain. And then the Dr. put medicine in some Gatorade and had me drink it.

Then I saw my mom come in. She still had her neck brace on but I got mine off before we came in to the hospital. My stomach hurt still so much. Then they took my mom to another room to get a cat scan. I got x-rays. It hurt a bit because they had to lift me up and put a board under me.

Then after that Franco came in. He was fine but a little bit sore and still in shock. Then it was my turn to get a cat scan. I was more open to the nurse then I thought I would be. I felt very dizzy. Then we got to the CAT scan room and it looked like a big square doughnut. Then they flipped me onto a different bed that was hooked onto the CAT scan. Then this computer would tell me to do stuff like lift my arms or hold my breath. When my stomach was in the CAT scan this green light would circle around me very quickly. Then I was done after maybe five times in and out of the CAT scan.

Then I went into a different room. That's when Elaine Gabby and Andrea showed up. They are my mom’s friends from work. Then my mom had to go to the bathroom but she had to use a bed pan. She thought it had flooded. Then my dad was able to come into the same room. Then the girls came back in. They had left so my mom could pee in private. Then they started talking about where Lucca and Franco were going to sleep because they both were good enough to go home. But Lucca’s neck still hurt a bit. So Elaine would take them to her house and she would care for them.

But my mom would spend the night in the hospital. Then I fell asleep and took a nap for about an hour or so. After I woke up I had to go to the bathroom. They said I could walk to the bathroom and I thought I could too. But when I sat up I could barely move. So they brought a little toilet to me. I got up very slowly and carefully sat on the toilet and went. But then after I got up I looked in the toilet and there was some kind of dirt in the toilet and then looked at my bed and there was dirt on there too.

At first I didn't care put when I sat on the bed my stomach started to turn and I tried to go to the trash can but my dad asked me way I needed but all I could say was "daddy trash can, I need daddy the trash can" and then he got it just in time when I threw up. Some of it landed on the floor and on my gown a little bit but then they changed me. Now I'm wearing a bright blue gown. I used melted ice chips to gargle my mouth.

Afterwards another stretcher came in. They put another neck brace around me and they helped me onto the stretcher. I was going to Cardinal Glenn children hospital. Apparently I had fluid in my abdomen or something. It was about a twenty/twenty-five minute drive. Then when we got there they put me on a table. They were touching my stomach and it hurt badly. Then they gave me this fluid (because I couldn't drink) and it was supposed to keep me hydrated. It felt like an ice pack was on my arm. But it made me less thirsty. Then I had to wait about two hours just for a room to be free. Then about thirty minutes to clean and get it ready. Then they put me back on a stretcher and wheeled me up to my room.

Then I started writing this journal and fell asleep. The next day I woke up and my stomach felt worse so they gave me more morphine. There were so many people touching my stomach and asking if it hurt. Then they said I might have surgery on my stomach so I can't eat. But they might give me something to drink. Then they said I might spend the night again. The next day I woke up feeling fine. I watched movies like Rango and Puss in Boots.

Then my dad said he was going to be gone for an hour to go pick up mom from the other hospital. Then instead of my dad helping me I went to the bathroom all by myself. Then I took a nap and when I woke up my mom was in the room. She saw me and started to cry tears of joy, I started to cry too. I hadn't seen her in two days, so I understand why she would cry. After that, mom and dad went up to the cafeteria and got food. It was hospital food so it wasn't so great. But they had fruit and the fruit was fine.

I had to go to the bathroom again. The nurse unhooked me and I went to the bathroom all by myself again. My mom asked if I had walked around and I said no. I saw an easel wall outside and had written on it. I drew a picture of a mermaid and a close up of a face.

Then a nurse came by with papers. I was ready to be discharged. When I went into the room the nurse had to take out my IVs. The first one made me feel so dizzy. I had to lay on the bed. And when she took out the other one I started to cry. It hurt so bad.

After that I wanted to ride in a wheelchair. But there were none around so I rode in a wagon. Then when we got into the main lobby they had wheelchairs so I rode in one of those. Then my mom wheeled me over to the car and helped me in.

Then we drove to the place where our car got towed. The car was squished. My mom found Pretzel In the back seat and right now we are driving home. I can't wait to see my friends and my family. I just can't wait!

By Isabella Burzio-Roca 
10 years old.