A mother who quickly moved her two kids away from danger was struck by an oncoming vehicle and sent into the air Tuesday.
The crash happened just before 1 p.m. at Sam's Club in the 600 block of N. Frederick Avenue in Gaithersburg, Md.
Authorities said Subinoy Mazumdar, 77, was driving a Buick LeSabre and traveling at a high rate of speed when he struck 31-year-old Sheila Orellana in the parking lot, who managed to move her two young children, a 15-month-old and 3-year-old, out of the way.
"It was a mother's instinct," Orella told News4's Pat Collins. "I knew that a car versus my children... it's obvious who was going to be the winner in that situation."
The moment she pushed her kids out of the way, Orella was hit by Mazumdar and thrown into the air.
Mazumdar then crashed through two closed metal doors in the front of the building, injuring two men in the food court. Dimas Chaves, 76, had to have his leg amputated as a result of the crash.
Orella and her children ended lunch early at Sam's Club. She says had one of her kids not had a temper tantrum, her family would have been in Mazumdar's way as he crashed into the foodcourt.
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"I probably would have been under the car," Orella said. "[The table we were sitting at] was gone."
Thaan Buithuan, 33, was also struck during the accident and sustained non-life threatening injuries. The impact pushed him about 15 feet from where he was originally standing, right next to the men who had to have his leg amputated.
"I feel lucky to be alive," Buithuan said.
Witnesses on the scene said the driver was upset about a parking spot.
