INDIANA TROOPER RECOUNTS SURVIVAL STORY

It's a survivor's story for 36-year-old Sergeant Rich Kelly, a 13-year veteran of the state police. From his hospital bed in Lafayette, a kiss from his mother provides comfort for Sergeant Rich Kelly who somehow survived a horrific crash. Trooper Kelly was inside this state police car Tuesday on the side of the road when a semi-truck slammed into his car and pushed it into another truck Trooper Kelly had pulled over. "I just remember metal, plastic and dust. At that point I just got out of the vehicle. It happened in a split second," he said. Kelly received numerous cuts on his hands, legs and head. He suffered a fractured vertebra and frequently closes his eyes to soothe his scratched cornea. But despite all of that, he's alive.

"Yeah, it is a miracle. I think when something like that happens, there is no rhyme or reason or answer for it and it is very safe to say," he said.

The miracle is truly appreciated by his wife LeeAnn and their four daughters ranging in age from 10 to 8 months. When Lee Ann saw a photo of his oldest daughter stained with her father's blood from the accident, it took her breath away.

"That's his blood on there and I guess the thankful part is he is going to be able to clean up this picture and keep it and I don't have to give it to her and say this is what we found in your dad's car," she said.

The tremendous impact of the crash is evident as you look at what's left of his metal ticket book which was in his hands at the time of the accident. "This is what was folded up against my abdomen," he said.

As Kelly got out of his car, spitting glass, he used his cell phone to call for help. His wife LeAnn found glass in his wallet.

"This is full of glass and it's what we have been picking off of him and its just embedded into him," she said.

Trooper Kelly was hit in another crash back in 2000. Kelly says his wife would probably like him to take a desk job, but he enjoys his work too much. Kelly is expected to make a full recovery, but its unclear when he will go back to work.

Police are reminding motorists that they should pull into the lane away from any stopped vehicle and slow down.