Talk show host Steve Wilkos is ‘lucky to be alive’ after he was involved in a serious car crash in Connecticut on Sunday and was immediately hospitalized.
The former Marine’s car flipped and ended up on it’s side in Darien after he struck several poles and a tree.
Wilkos said he never drinks or does drugs but lost control of his car while he was reaching for his glasses.
Sidekick: Steve Wilkos was a bodyguard on The Jerry Springer Show from 1994 to 2007 before being offered his own tabloid talk show which is still in production
Steve Wilkos is lucky to be alive after a car crash sent the talk show host and former Jerry Springer bodyguard to the hospital. The scene of the crash is pictured above
Muscle: Wilkos (pictured left) lost control of his car while he was reaching for his glasses in Darien, Connecticut on Sunday when he hit some poles and a tree
The former Jerry Springer bodyguard, who has since been released from hospital, told TMZ he was reaching for his glasses — which he usually wears while driving — to put them on when his car hit a curb before careening into poles and a tree.
He told the website that he was OK, though pretty beaten up, and has since released a further statement saying he felt ‘lucky to be alive’ after seeing the damage to his car.
He added: ‘I am so thankful to the first responders from Post 53 and our local police department in Darien, Connecticut, as well as all the wonderful people who took care of me at Stamford hospital.’
The Darien Times tweeted a picture of the crash which showed the extent of the damage, captioning it: ‘Car flips on West Avenue after striking poles and tree Sunday, driver transported to hospital.’
Survived: Following the crash, he said he was OK though pretty beaten up, and felt ‘lucky to be alive’ after seeing the damage to his car
Family: The former marine, pictured with his wife and two kids, was taken to hospital after the crash but has since been released
In a tragic coincidence, the 53-year-old also revealed a crew member who works on his show and his wife crashed and died in the same area on the same day.
Police said Wilkos’s crash remains an ‘active and open investigation’.
The former Chicago PD officer worked on The Jerry Springer Show as a bodyguard from 1994 to 2007.
He filled in for the host on more than 50 episodes, with Springer calling him a ‘natural choice’ due to his his law enforcement background and experience on TV.
Wilkos was then offered his own tabloid talk show, which debuted on 10 September, 2007, just two months after he left Jerry Springer.
Despite his crash and the death of the crew member, production for the show is set to continue this week.