Zambranas in need after serious collision
Idyllwild Help Center (IHC) Client Services Administrator Skye Zambrana and her husband Mike are recovering from serious injuries they both suffered in a traffic collision Monday night, May 2.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF ZAMBRANAS
According to IHC Executive Director Colleen Meyer, the Zambranas, who moved to Hemet a year ago because they could not find housing in Idyllwild, were returning home from picking up sandwiches when a 16-year-old unlicensed male driver’s vehicle T-boned their vehicle, causing their vehicle to flip upside down. This occurred on the Ramona Expressway in San Jacinto.
Skye was airlifted from the scene with a broken pelvis and right arm, said Meyer. Mike has four broken vertebrae. Both were in the same hospital room at Riverside Regional Medical Center.
California Highway Patrol’s Jeff Osteen said the report was incomplete as to the details of what occurred but he did say that a 16-year-old male of San Jacinto was involved, driving a white 2011 BMW 328I, and he was either unlicensed or did not have a license in his possession. The Zambranas were in a gray 2010 Nissan Murano. He confirmed the collision occurred on the Ramona Expressway in San Jacinto at 6:18 p.m.
Mike said he was in the hospital until May 5 and Skye was in for a week.
“I don’t remember the moment before the impact,” said Mike. He remembers being cut out of the seatbelt. “When I woke up, I was upside down in the car. Skye wasn’t there.” He said it was very surreal. I kept asking, “Where’s my wife? Where’s my wife? Is she OK? They wouldn’t tell me.”
He could only think the worst had happened. He said he then heard her breathing in an odd way outside of the vehicle and talking.
She may have been ejected, he said, but neither of them know for sure.
Skye broke both her pelvis and her right arm in two places. He said she just started taking her first steps Monday. “I’m still walking with a walker,” Mike said but if he’s on his feet for too long, his back swells. Now that Skye is home, he needs to take care of her, too.
“Both Skye and Mike will be out of work for a period of time and their only car was totaled in this accident,” wrote IHC employee Kim Negrete. Mike has no estimate as to when they will be able to return to work. Doctors estimate 12 weeks for Skye’s pelvis to heal.
“Skye tirelessly helps others all day for our community, so let’s all rally together to help them as they have a long road to recovery. No amount is too small and all donations are appreciated,” said Negrete.
The Zambranas have been married for 21 years and have two children: Zoe is a junior at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Zach works with his dad at Pino Tree Service where Mike is a safety director.
Due to the fees GoFund me charges, IHC is requesting that donations be made directly to the Zambranas through their PayPal account at [email protected], or donate cash or checks made out in their name at IHC and Thrift Store.
