Utah: UDOT worker recovering after being struck by a semi

A Utah Department of Transportation employee says he's fortunate to have survived after being struck by a semi truck 12 days ago. UDOT Supervisor Morgan McCarthy was inspecting bridges along Interstate 80 with his crew on the morning of July 20th. He had just gotten out of his pickup near the Jeremy Ranch exit of westbound I-80 when he noticed an 18 wheeler on the right shoulder bearing down on him.

"It was a matter of seconds of 'I better run because I'm going to die if I don't'," McCarthy told ABC4 Utah News Tuesday. "That exactly was my instinct and I took off around the front of my truck because that's about the only protection I had out there on the road and I didn't make it past my truck when he hit my truck."

His truck then hit him, sending him 30 feet down the side of the road and leaving him with a broken back and bruises all over his body. "The impact was like...what can I say getting hit by a semi at that speed?" McCarthy said. "The crashing noise. I just...I'll never forget that crash of the truck and after that it was just coming to with people asking if you're OK. It felt like both my legs were broken at the time."

His wife Lindsey and their two children were home when the phone rang.

"My heart dropped," Lindsey said. "Thinking 'This is it'. It was our daughter's birthday. She turned 7 and I'm thinking you know 'He's going to be gone on her birthday and this is it'."

McCarthy says he considers himself lucky. He knows if things had gone differently he wouldn't be here today.

"If I'd have been not watching for traffic behind you know, I would have never known what happened," Morgan said. "There's angels or somebody. Somebody you know looking out for me. It was luck. Somebody was on my side that day."

McCarthy doesn't know exactly what caused the semi driver to drift out of his lane but he hopes his story can be a lesson for drowsy or distracted drivers - in fact for all drivers.

"Hopefully everybody that's out there, they know we're out there making sure that everybody gets home to their families," McCarthy said. "We want to be in the same boat as them we can get home safe to our families."

McCarthy says when he's fully recovered he plans to return to his job and will be right back out there along the highways.