A good Samaritan who stopped to help a couple move their disabled vehicle off of a California highway had his legs severed after he was allegedly hit by a drunk driver.
Mark Poss, a 29-year-old dad from Sacramento, pulled over to assist Mario Sanchez and his friend Arlette Lavato push their car when the two men were struck from behind.
Sanchez suffered from a fractured leg, but Poss’s injuries proved to be much more severe.
Mark Poss (pictured), a 29-year-old father from Sacremento, was allegedly hit by a drunk driver on Sunday
‘Right away, I knew, he had no legs,’ Lavato told local affiliate Fox 40 in Sacramento. ‘I told the guy, like, we’re going to get you help, just hold on.’
Lavato said her car, which had run out of gas on Sunday, was in the emergency lane on Highway 50 near the 15th Street offramp when the incident occurred.
‘So not in the driving lane. We were in the emergency lane. We were pulled over out of the way completely,’ Lovato said.
A tourniquet was applied to Poss’s injuries by a California Highway Police officer following his arrival.
The motorist who hit Poss, 24-year-old Jacob Olson (pictured), was reportedly drunk when he hit the two men
Doctors at UC Davis Medical Center, where Poss is being treated, said the officer’s actions likely saved his life.
The motorist who hit Poss, 24-year-old Jacob Olson, was reportedly drunk when he hit the two men.
‘(Olson) displayed signs and symptoms of alcoholic beverage intoxication and was determined to be driving under the influence of alcoholic beverages at the time of the collision,’ a CHP report states.
Olson remains in custody at Sacramento County Jail and was arraigned on DUI charges on Tuesday.
Lovato said that Olson had stayed on the scene following the accident but was not able to assist during the incident.
‘He wasn’t in the right state of mind. He was kind of panicking, he was in shock himself. I’m pretty sure he didn’t intentionally, he didn’t mean to hurt anyone. But unfortunately he did,’ Lovato said.
Poss will receive treatment for another week inside the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit and faces a few more weeks of hospital care and months of rehabilitation, according to a Go Fund Me page setup to help with medical costs.
Poss is married and has a one-and-a-half year old son at home.
Arlette Lavato (pictured) said her car, which had run out of gas on Sunday, was in the emergency lane on Highway 50 near the 15th Street offramp when the incident occurred