Prince George's County Car Crash Survivor Meets Rescuers Who Saved Her

A woman who survived a car crash that killed her two best friends finally got to meet her rescuers -- almost 30 years after the day that changed her life.

Lisa Beavers Hegewisch reunited on Monday with members of the Prince George's County Fire/EMS Department who saved her life on Nov. 17, 1986.

"The fact that I have this opportunity today is beyond what I could ever imagine," she said.

Hegewisch was driving her friends, Jeanine Everhart and Gloria Graham, both 17, home from St. Vincent Pallotti High School in Laurel, Md. when the brakes on a dump truck in front of them failed.

The massive vehicle carrying hot asphalt stalled in front of them at the top of a hill on Good Luck Road in Riverdale, and then rolled backward into their Toyota. The dump truck slammed the car into trees at about 50 mph, The Washington Post reported at the time.

Everhart and Graham were killed, and Hegewisch suffered a head injury.

Recently, Hegewisch, who works as a yoga instructor, was asked to lead a workshop for the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. When she heard a member of the group had a connection to the Prince George's County fire department, she told him she had always wanted to thank the crew that saved her.

After the crash, the Prince George's County fire department made safety upgrades to better assist people in similar collisions. Fire trucks in use now have winches that can handle significant weight, and more electrical and hydraulic power is available.

Gloria Graham's sister, Donna Graham, said she was thankful her sister's death had an impact on others.

"For 29 years, it's done something," she said.

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