She was in a lot of pain, but able to dial 911 after a car pulled into her lane on Ga. 15, Abby Short told a 911 operator.
“The car slid in front of me and I couldn’t stop,” Short said in the call, released Friday afternoon. “I’m just hurting a lot. I’m sorry.”
Short, 27, survived the crash Wednesday night, but four others, all University of Georgia students, did not. The one student who survived the crash that killed four friends remained in critical condition Friday, a hospital spokesman said.
Agnes Kim, 21, was driving a Toyota Camry northbound on Ga. 15 in Oconee County when she crossed the center line and into the path of a Chevrolet Cobalt late Wednesday, the Georgia State Patrol said. The crash killed all four passengers in Kim’s car: Kayla Leigh Canedo, 19, of Alpharetta; Brittany Katherine Feldman, 20, of Alpharetta; Christina Devon Semeria, 19, of Milton; and Halle Grace Scott, 19, of Dunwoody.
Short, the driver of the Chevrolet, was treated and released from Athens Regional Medical Center. But Kim, a senior marketing major, sustained head injuries and was in coma late Thursday, her pastor told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
As a freshman, Kim began volunteering with Young Life, a Christian ministry group and was also involved with Classic City Church, Pastor Lee Mason said.
“You’re happy that she’s alive but it’s a very weird relief,” Mason said, pointing out the other lives lost. “You have four sets of parents whose worst nightmare came true.”
On Friday, Mason and his wife, Lisa, returned to the hospital to pray over Kim, whose condition is mostly unchanged from the day before, Lisa Mason said.
U.S. Rep. Jody Hice, R-Georgia, called for a moment of silence Friday morning in the House of Representatives.
“The remarkable impact of these women upon UGA’s campus is evidenced by the thousands of students, faculty and staff who gathered yesterday in an outpouring of love, support and remembrance,” Hice said. “Mr. Speaker, this tragedy is every parent’s worst nightmare, and our hearts ache for these families.”
Hice’s district includes Athens and Oconee County.
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