MIAMI (WSVN) - A teen who was the sole survivor of a crash that killed his friends is speaking exclusively to 7News about his recovery.
Seventeen-year-old Isaac Lipscomb said he feels extremely lucky to be alive as he lies in his hospital bed at Jackson Memorial Hospital. He said it is all about keeping faith and growing stronger every day for those he lost and loved.
“He was coming out of Wal-Mart, going down the street. He was driving, and he sped up, and he decided to switch lanes. He was going so fast,” Lipscomb said. “He tried to get back straight and he swerved, and I remember my body going this way then back this way, and then I don’t really know what happened.”
The football star and two of his classmates from Keys Gate Charter High School were involved in a deadly drive in Homestead that drastically changed Lipscomb’s life.
“I remember when they told me. I couldn’t believe it,” Lipscomb said.
Seventeen-year-old Isaiah West and 18-year-old Samir Barrera were both killed in the crash. They were ejected from the Mini Cooper along Southwest 137th Avenue, near Campbell Drive after school.
Police said Barrera, who was driving, lost control of the car and slammed into a tree after trying to maneuver around traffic.
Lipscomb was airlifted to JMH after he was freed from the mangled car in critical condition.
Lipscomb said his first memory after the crash was of one of his football coaches. “He said ‘Issac,’ he said, ‘Listen to me, everything’s gonna be alright.’ When he told me that, I knew I was gonna be okay.”
Lipscomb has since undergone surgery for a spinal cord injury.
“I was in the front seat. I was like, ‘How, how.’ Why not me? ‘Cause I didn’t have my seatbelt on either,” he said. “Why didn’t I fly out the window like they did? God blessed me, and I thank Him for that everyday when I wake up or before I go to sleep.”
Lipscomb has been working to sit up for several hours at a time as part of his rehab. He said the surgery was a success, but his hospital bills are accumulating.
His family has set up a GoFundMe page. If you’d like to donate, go to: www.gofundme.com/isaac-lipscomb-recovery-fund.
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