2 Injured After Goose Crashes Through Windshield
LITTLE FALLS, Minn. (WCCO) -- Two people needed to go to the hospital on Monday after a goose crashed through their windshield near Little Falls.
Here's a look at the damage done by the large bird. WCCO's Bill Hudson tells us what the driver did that likely saved their lives.
Locals here tell us it's not the first time a motorist has had a goose through the windshield along Highway 10. Wet ditches and rising geese numbers is a formula for more.
At 65 miles per hour, colliding with anything along a highway can spell trouble. A 10 to 15-pound goose was the last thing on Tim Anderson's mind.
Speaking through an interpreter, Tim recalls…
"Something must've spooked them, they started flying up," Anderson said.
He and Tawn Bjornson were just south of Little Falls on Highway 10 and 113th Street. When in broad daylight Monday afternoon, a goose appeared out of nowhere.
"My right side was full of feathers the whole right side I couldn't see where I was going," Tim Anderson said.
"I've seen plenty of deer collisions. Never a goose through the windshield like this," Matt Anderson with the Minnesota State Patrol said.
Trooper Matt Anderson handled the call for help.
"It entered through the windshield in the cab of the vehicle," Matt Anderson said.
The impact shattered the passenger side of the windshield, showering both of them in glass. As the goose came through, it hit his shoulder and Tawn's left eye.
They were taken to the local hospital for treatment.
"You both are very lucky? Yes we are yes we are," Tim Anderson said.
Fortunately, the couple wasn't more severely injured. They did the correct thing by driving straight forward. Safety experts say if it happens to you, whatever you do, don't try to swerve to avoid striking one.
