A bump in the night

From the beautiful beaches of Goa, we boarded a 'luxury' overnight bus to Hampi. Full of tourists heading from one beautiful site to another, the bus was full of conversations in different languages before people started to doze off during our bumpy, noisy ride. With so many tourists on board, the bathroom breaks were frequent...the bus pulls to the side of the road, and people dart out into the fields and ditches to relieve a full bladder. At some point, there was a stop but no one was getting off. We peered out the window and there was another bus from our same company halfway off the road, and passengers were climbing out the door as we arrived. A crash had just occurred between the bus and a cargo truck. People from our bus wandered out and started bringing out toilet paper, gauze, even baby diapers to dress some of the cuts and bruises people had suffered. With all my luggage underneath the bus, I was absolutely helpless with nothing to offer people. We were there for an hour or so as they rigged another cargo truck to pull the truck away from the bus. It took a while for the roap to hold, with 20-30 men shouting orders all at the same time. Around this time we started to hear news that the bus driver was still stuck in the bus, his legs were smashed and he could not get out. Katie found someone who spoke Hindi and went up to inquire if he needed pain killers, but he refused them. The next step was using the same ragged old rope to basically pull off the front of the bus. The rope broke a time or two and they kept using a shorter piece of rope to attempt the process again. Finally, with a crunch of metal, the front of the bus pulls off and the bus driver is quickly removed. Things begin moving quickly, all the passengers are called back to our bus. A cushion is set on the aisle floor and the stoic bus driver is laid down and wrapped up in blankets donated by all the passengers. It is another three hours on bumpy, pot-holed roads before we reach a hospital. Tim and I were kicked out of our seats, and were crammed into the back of the bus. I continued to watch the bus driver, as he lay there with his lips moving rapidly...seemingly in prayer, but who knows, he could have easily been cursing the truck driver for the circumstances he ended up in. It was 5 am by the time we reached the hospital, and several hours that the driver had been silently awaiting help. He was taken into the hospital, everyone returned to their seats, and we continued on down the road to Hampi. It was a surreal, helpless night. Between language barriers, not having any equipment, let alone medical knowledge...I had a knot in my stomach through the whole affair wishing there was something more I could do to help. It made me appreciate so much our emergency response system in the US. Without cell phone reception, and being so far from a hospital, there was little to do except work together to help save this guy's life. It makes you realize all that you take for granted, but is also a testimony to people pitching in and helping when the situation calls for it.