Airman, child survive car crash

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class David Owsianka
  • 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  A 56th Security Forces Squadron Airman, his two-year-old daughter and another passenger survived a rollover accident sustaining only minor injuries July 16 while driving home from Disneyland. He credits the training he received through a safety course on base.

Senior Airman Dallas Ansick, 56th Security Forces Squadron desk sergeant, lost control of his vehicle while driving on the interstate. The vehicle spun out and slid across the two-lane road, then fishtailed upon hitting off-road gravel. The passenger side tires struck a ditch causing the vehicle to roll three times before coming to a stop sideways on the driver's side.

"Rolling like I did, with the sound of the crunch and everything going on, I felt as though I put a gun to their heads," Ansick said.

In Maricopa County alone, more than 85 percent of child safety seats are used incorrectly or not at all, according to Anthony Rabonza, 56th Civil Engineer Squadron Fire and Emergency Services fire chief.

"A properly installed child car safety seat is the best protection for a child in a crash," he said.

Prior to his daughter's birth, Ansick took a car seat safety course provided by Luke Air Force Base Fire and Emergency Services.

The course covers information on child car seat safety, proper seat selection and installation, and seat belt safety education.

Ansick has also received training from SFS on vehicle rollover accidents, and was trained on how to handle those situations.

"It's engraved in my head to spread out my body, and make sure I am braced for what's about to happen," he said.

Once the vehicle came to a stop, Ansick quickly checked on the passengers.

My initial thought was to see if my daughter was OK," he said. "When I looked in the back seat, she was just waking up, kind of stretched out and gave me a look like, 'Daddy, why are we sideways?'"

Ansick safely pulled both passengers from the vehicle.

"The things I learned in the course saved my daughter's life," Ansick said. "She escaped the major accident with not a scratch or bruise on her."

The Luke AFB Fire and Emergncy Services has 15 national certified technicians who handle walk-ins and appointments. The 56th Force Support Squadron Airman and Family Readiness Center also conducts a monthly car seat class.

For more information or to make an appointment, call the Luke Fire and Emergncy Services at (623) 856-7421.