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TOOELE — A young father in Tooele said he feels very fortunate after he and his 9-month-old son survived a head-on crash with an accused drunken driver.
Miles Tolman was driving north Friday evening with his infant son, Bryson, in the car when a car with no headlights hit them. The accident happened at the intersection of 500 North and Main Street in Tooele.
Tolman said he spotted the black car right before impact.
"I tried to turn," he said. "But, before I could turn, he hit me dead on."
Police said the driver of the black car appeared to be driving under the influence of alcohol without his headlights turned on. The driver made a left turn right into Tolman, according to police.
"My first thought was, 'I want to make sure my son is okay,' " Tolman said. "I'm screaming, 'Is my son okay?!' The next thing I know, I went down and hit the pavement."
Tolman said when he regained consciousness, he heard Bryson screaming in an ambulance.
"I was so scared because I don't know what I would do if I ever lost my son," he said.
Tolman's wife, Megan Coleman, received a call informing her of the accident while she was at work.
"They wanted to Life Flight my baby at first," Coleman said. "That scared me. Then they ended up taking them both by ambulance, which is still pretty bad."
Bryson received a burn from the seatbelt and bruising on his chest from the accident. Tolman injured his knee, back and neck. But the family is very grateful that there were no fatalities.
"It's a miracle that we are still here," Coleman said.
In Utah in 2012, 20 people died in drunk driving crashes, less than 10 percent of the total 217 fatalities. However, that number has decreased from the 69 drunk driving fatalities that represented more than 20 percent of the total deaths only 10 years earlier.
The Tolmans are relieved they did not become statistics.
"I just feel so blessed that we're alive," Tolman said. "I don't want anyone to ever experience this. If you're going to drink, please don't drive."
A DUI has not been formally charged yet, and the investigation is still underway.
