RIP Katrina Coomer
- February 16th, 2007
- Posted in Tech . Updates
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At 15 1011CST FEB 2007, I witnessed the worst automobile accident I could have ever imagined. A young woman (Katrina Coomer) in her 1998 Honda Accord collided head on with an 18-wheeler immediately in front of my truck. The Accord essentially disappeared in front of me as I came to the most rapid hault my brakes could handle. Despite myself, and several civilians rushing to the destroyed Accord and working together to save the life of this young woman, Katrina did not survive.
I ask that anyone reading this pray for Katrina’s family. Her family should know that there were several people – military, civilian, law enforcement, and EMT alike, doing their best at the scene to try and save her life.
Rest in Peace Katrina. I did everything I could do. I wish I could have done more,
SGT Anthony J. Martinez
Update: I did in fact complete and fax the sworn statement, and have learned that they will be going back to the vehicle to make a final determination as to the condition of the seatbelt. All interested parties should be aware that human memory is far from infallible, and in high stress situations can create very real situations that do not in reality exist. Personally, I am quite certain I moved a seatbelt prior to checking her pulse. However, that memory could be incorrect, and the physical state of the seatbelt will know better than I. I do hope my memory is a fully accurate account of the event, but it is what it is.
Final Update: The LSP was cooperative in returning to the wreckage, and ensuring that there were no mistakes in their report. While my memory certainly tells me that there was a seatbelt, the physical evidence and on-scene reports from the LSP disagree. They do not disagree that we had to move something, nor do they disagree that something was cut to free her from the wreckage, it just was not the driver’s side seatbelt. Having seen photos of what was left of the vehicle, it really could have been anything, but it was clearly not the driver’s side seatbelt that was cut, as it remains intact. My apologies to anyone adversely impacted by this news, or the inaccuracies of my memory where the seatbelt is concerned.
Ant -
You did your best. Keep in mind, many people wouldn’t have even bothered to stop – they would have just been annoyed at the traffic delay. You did more than most would have even tried between trying to stabilize the victim and the situation until better trained personnel arrived and then making a LZ for the chopper after they did. You kept and used your head and your training. But at the end of the day, we must all accept we are not in charge.
You are a fine young man and I am proud to call you son. Once again, you have stepped up to try to right what’s wrong and try to fix what’s broke when so many others are hardly bothered. You did your best and that is all anyone can expect.
Dad.
Anthony I think that her parent’s and family would be comforted to know that their daughter was in the hands of Christians and that they had laid their hands on her with prayers. BUT God’s hand was with her on her journey. You did what you could and didn’t think twice about what danger you yourself could have put yourself in. THIS is the sign of a true hero. I am proud of your efforts and I am glad that you were with her. In the end it was God’s Will to take Katrina into his Kingdom and probably God’s Will that YOU be there with her to help comfort her.
Love you,
Mom
I truly believe that you were behind that truck at that exact moment for a reason. You were trained well in how to render aide to those in need. I was proud to hear you tell the story of how you helped this young woman and took charge of a horrible situation. You come from a family that is always willing to sacrifice anything and everything for others. Even though things did not turn out as we hoped and prayed for, I’m sure that her family will always be grateful to those who did stop to give their daughter a fighting chance. As always, I keep you in my thoughts and prayers.
Love.
Aunt Silvia
My wife Cindy, witnessed this horrible accident and was one of the hero’s who stopped to help Katrina. She held her head and prayed over this young lady and continued to pray until help arrived all the while doing everything she could to help. My wife was a nurse for more than 25 years and she has a Christian heart and I agree with your letter whole heartedly. In this day there are more people who would not stop than would. I commend your son and applaud his act of heroism and pray blessings upon him. If we can ever be of any assistance to you or your family please do not hesitate to call on us.
God bless,
Freddie Pate
Dear Sgt. Martinez,
I am so very proud of you. I was driving west bound I-10 when I saw a scene on the side of the interstate with a man pacing around the vehicle with a look of desparateness. …immediately stopped and informed him I was a nurse and asked if I could help. He told me yes, but he thought it was too late. I think this man must have been you. For when I got to the car (what was left of it), this man noticed she was pregnant. We immediately attempted to do whatever we could to help this woman and her unborn baby and I began to pray immediately for them both. We found she in fact was still alive but in very grave condition. We could only try and keep her airway open for she was unable to be moved due to her position in the car. Yes, it was a very disturbing scene. Being a nurse, I have seen a lot, but this really was the worst I have ever seen and the most desparate I have ever been wanting to save someone, especially seeing she was pregnant. You did do all you could do and I too find it difficult to sleep at night wondering if there was anything more I could have done. I have been looking for an article or news about this and could never find anything. I just wanted to know her name so I could continue to pray for her and her family.
You did all you could and more. I am very proud of you and share your grief. I know we can’t explain why some things happen, but I do know that God can and will give us the strength to carry on with our lives. We may never forget it, but we can ask God for the strength to carry on.
I pray the Lord will give you and Ms. Coomer’s family peace. If ever it is me on the side of the road in dire need, I hope it is you that comes to my aid, for you were so compassionate and desparate to help in way you could and you did.
So, thanks Sgt., I appreciate you and I know Ms. Coomer’s family does too. God bless and keep you.
Cindy
By the way, I just read the article about the accident and I plan on contacting the newspaper about her NOT wearing her seatbelt.
Everyone on the scene knows she WAS wearing her seatbelt for they had to CUT it with some one’s pocket knife to extract her from the car. I feel this is really unfair to Ms. Coomer’s family to let them think she was not wearing her seatbelt and perhaps if she would have fastened it she may have lived. So, to Ms. Coomer’s family, rest assured, Katrina WAS wearing her seatbelt. I was there and witnessed a man using his pocket knife to cut the seatbelt loose. I deeply believe she and her unborn child is with the Lord now and He has just added 2 more angels to Heaven.
Cindy
Thanks for the replies. I was completely certain she was wearing her seatbelt, as that was one of the few details about what was left of her vehicle that I distinctly recalled. There was another man that showed up at virtually the same time I did, I believe he was the one you spoke to about helping. I was the one in uniform that found her pulse in her neck, picked up the back of the vehicle, and provided gloves/gauze/whatever else I had in the back of my truck and motorcycle – to include my jackstands to hold the car in place. I know we did all we could do, and I have seen horrible things before as well. Those things just typically involve acts of war, and not civilian accidents. Thank you for being there to handle the medical side in all that confusion, and freeing me up for the heavy lifting and settting up the LZ for the Life Flight helicopter. Despite not having known anyone else there, everyone worked together in their attempts to save her life. You are right, the Lord has increased his choir of angels, and I know he heard our prayers at the scene.
Regards,
SGT Anthony J. Martinez
Dear Anthony, I am one of the Army Mom’s “cyber aquainted” with your mom. I am a retired nurse, husband still working as doctor. God has given all of us gifts and placed all of us exactly where he needed us, and when he needed us. The visual and emotional scenes of what you have been through…there and in battle will be things that over time you will gain control of when to call them forward in your heart and mind, and when you can leave that door in your heart closed for awhile. Over time my favorite piece of scripture that gives me hope to cling to is the 23rd Psalm. I hope you will have someone you can turn to to talk about this accidnet and how sad to be witness to the loss of Katrina and her unborn child’s life. I am saying a special Blessing over her and fact that you and others were with her at the end. I hope her family is able to know this and take comfort in her not being alone.. Susan Potter
Dear Sgt. Martinez,
I to am a cyber “Army Mom” and I hope that if I am ever in the position to need help I can only hope that the individual has the same tenacity, compassion and GREAT Human spirit to help me.
God Bless you Anthony stay safe.
Janet Wachniak
Sgt. Martinez,
I too am a BOM and have coresponded with your mom. I just want to say that I am a disabled police officer and I know how difficult and challenging situations like this can be. I must tell you though I do not know many people your age that would just stop and volunteer to help a perfect stranger and help other trained personnel to make what sounds like the perfect attempt to save the young woman and her child’s life. I know how proud your mother is I can read it in her words. I am proud just because of what you soldiers do for our country but you have defined in more than one definition the word HERO. I would be proud to know you Sgt. Martinez. Rest assured you did the best you could. I remember how hard it was the first time I lost a preson who was pregnant on duty it was very hard. I know your pain. There was nothing I could do nor could you. You did all you could. We are all very PROUD of you.
God bless you,
Penny
PAM of AJ
Anthony . . . . I am so very proud of you!!! What you did was HEROIC! I pray that if anything should ever happen to me or any of my family, that there is a caring and compassionate soul like you who will also take the time to stop and help. In this world of “HURRY” and “I DON’T WANT TO GET INVOLVED” or “IT’S NOT MY BUSINESS”, people tend to just carry on w/their own lives not really thinking about how all of our lives are intertwined (sp) in this world . . . that is how God meant it to be. He meant us to be “FAMILY” and help and take care of each other. What you were a part of will be with you forever but . . .once of these days . . .it won’t be the nightmares, the “Could I have done more”, etc . . It will be “I DID what I was supposed to do . . . God put me there for a reason and I did what I could.”
Whether or not she saw who you were, she KNOWS who you are today . . . and . . . she and her baby did not die alone. I am sure her family appreciates all you did. All that is expected of you is ALL YOU CAN DO . . and YOU DID JUST THAT! You are one heck of a guy . . .but . . . .I have known that for quite some time now!!
God bless Anthony and I pray that this tragedy will be one that will fade from tragedy to being there for a reason.
Terry (Ty’s MOM)
Anthony, I want you to know that you are truly a hero. Being a hero doesn’t always mean that things turn out good or right at the end, it means that your heart and your actions were right at that moment. Your compassion and caring actions were what that young lady needed at that moment. I want you to remember this: God has a purpose for everything, and that day He used you to help someone, and He used you as an example to all of us, and to those who were there. You do not know what your actions of that day has done to someone who will remember you, and will encourage them to give to others the same way you gave that day. Maybe someone there was having a rough period in their life and thinking that no one cares, and was depressed…and maybe watching you turned their lives around. We don’t know….only God does. What I do know is that, if nothing else, you have touched me with your compassion. I will be praying for her family, but I will also be praying for you. It was horrible to witness, and hard to know that she died no matter how much you tried…but, you are still a hero…a young man that I would be proud to call my own, or have standing next to my husband (in Iraq), or my son in Afghanistan, or my other son getting ready to deploy to Iraq. May God bless you always. Dawn Bastounes
First of all I want to say thank you for everything that you all did to try and save Katrina. I know her family is truly thankful. Katrina was a great friend and just a wonderful person inside and out. Katrina along with her son will be laid to rest tomorrow morning at 10:00 am at Hixson Funeral Home in Sulphur. I am going to let her mother Brenda and her father Mark know about your web page and everything you have done. You truly are heros, but sometimes God has bigger plans. Thank you all once again.
Hollie
Dear Anthony – I truly believe that God wanted and needed you to be there at that time for Katrina – and she will never leave your heart – why did God want you there ? We don’t know the answer to that yet, but He does and maybe it will become known to you. Love and may God bless
you as you head back to your brothers in Iraq.
It makes us all feel better knowing that Katrina had so many caring people by her side at a time of need Thank all of you. What we don’t know yet is what happened in the eastbound lane if ANYONE has any information to help us understand what caused this accident. THANK YOU for letting us know that she was wearing a seat belt! GOD Bless your family
My son in law was driving an 18 wheeler and had just been passed up by the truck that hit Katrina. He was the first person on the scene. I will give this site info to my daughter who was with him when they witnessed the accident so that she may post his comments for the family.
May God be with all of you and bless each of you through your grief.
I remember who he was, there were three or four of us that converged on the vehicle at the same time. We all did everything we could do.
I would like to thank everyone for their comments about my precious daughter and grandbaby. I am so grateful that people prayed with her and stayed with her until the end. Thank you Sgt. Martinez for being her hero that day. I’m sure there are a lot of people that were there that day that were also heroes. Thank you Cindy for holding her and praying with her. I feel better knowing that people who truly cared about Katrina were on the scene and trying to save her and Travis Lee’s life. Katrina had lovingly picked this name for Travis. She picked Lee because she found out it means ‘loving.’ I KNEW she had to be wearing her seat belt because she wouldn’t get in a car without buckling up. Katrina was a beautiful young woman and I am going to miss her forever. She is my only daughter and Travis would have been my first grandchild. I most certainly do not know how I am going to live the rest of my life without them. With God’s help and my dear friends I guess I will do it one moment at a time. Again, I am truly grateful for all of you who were there with my daughter as she took her last breaths. Love to all, Brenda Coomer
I would like to thank everyone for their efforts on that day. I would give anything to have been able to be there in her last moments but I am glad that she did not have to spend them alone. Katrina was my best friend and even though I never got to meet baby Travis I loved him from the moment I knew he was coming. I have so many good memories and they will stay with me forever. I know that Katrina had her seatbelt on. When I would ride with her she would not even leave the drive way until I put my seatbelt on. She was always very adimit about that. I will always love and miss them. I know that they are safe in God’s arms, and I will see them again one day. Again, thank you to all the people who tried to save their lives. I know you did everything you could.
I would appreciate if Sgt. Martinez or Cindy would call me or correspond with me through email. I have a few questions that I hope you can answer. I just want to talk to someone who was there during Katrina’s last minutes. Please email me at my friend’s email address smooshybrain@yahoo.com and I will email you back. Thank you so much.
I would also like to thank Sgt. Martinez and Cindy and all the others who were with Katrina that day.. Sgt. Martinez I commend you because as I read the comments I was touched by the way people speak of you, and it touched me and who best to be there that day with Katrina and baby Travis. Mrs. Cindy, I thank you because reading your words I felt your pure heart and you prayed for them and your heart meant it. I spent little time with Katrina but she was a huge part of my life because we shared something very special, we shared a best friend (Amanda) and I sat and listened to her talk one day and she had so many dreams and things that she wanted to do and see. She inspired me. I DO believe that she is sharing that energy still and will live on through so many of us. I will continue to pray for her family and once again I want to thank God that she was surrounded with good spirits and love as she took her last breath.
Thank you Sgt. Martinez for responding to my comment so quickly. It really means a lot. It helps a little to here from people who were there. I would really appreciate it if Cindy would e-mail me. I would like to know all details that you could share with me. If anyone else has anything else to share about what happened please e-mail me at amandadare86@yahoo.com. It would really mean a lot to me to here from you. Thank you so much.
Amada,
I tryed to email you, but outlook is telling me that the email address you posted is not valid. Please feel free to email me at cindy@freddiepate.com anytime or call me at 550-9475. Thanks and God bless.
Respectfully Yours,
Cindy
I remember when I first met Katrina, she was working at conoco in sulphur on Beglis Parkway. I was new to sulphur and stopped there to fuel my vehicle. From the moment I walked in to pay for my fuel, I was greeted by a young, outgoing bubbly lady. Her smile was bright and her eyes just sparkled. She was so sweet and friendly. Over time we became close friends and later on became room mates in Lake Charles. She was always there for me and everyone of her friends. Her family was everything to her. We used to gather up our fishing tackle and rods and head out to the water to enjoy the peace, quiet and excitement of fishing. After hurricane Rita hit we slowly drifted apart as life often takes you down different paths. We kept in contact with each other but with time and changing phone numbers, we lost touch. I didn’t know Katrina was expecting a baby boy. I didn’t even know she passed away until just yesterday. You see, I moved to Dallas on 2/13/07 never knowing that I wouldn’t ever hear from or see my friend again. My heart is in pieces. I never got to thank her that one last time for being such a great friend and always giving me the positive influience that I needed. She taught me so much in the short time I knew her. I’m so thankful that I was blessed with her love, compassion and friendship just to name a few. Ms. Brenda, Mr. Mark and Kyle….Katrina was such a wonderful friend, daughter and sister. She loved life, her family and friends. I know she and Travis Lee are shining down upon all of you from heaven. I’m so thankful I was given the privelege to know Katrina and I will forever hold her and baby Travis in that special place in my heart. Sgt. Martinez, Ms. Cindy and everyone else who stopped to help Katrina and Travis that day, thank you for your willingness to help and your desire to keep my friend and her unborn baby alive. She knew you were there and doing everything you possibly could to save her. The Katrina I know won’t ever forget that you all fought with her and for her. God Bless you all.
I am Travis’ dad if Mr. Martinez could contact me at joeandlogan@yahoo.com it would be greatly appreciated. May Katrina, the sweetest girl I ever knew and Travis my first born son live forever through us