OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — As severe winter weather continues to be a problem across West Michigan over the holiday weekend, a mother recalls being a witness to an incident in Ottawa County where a Meijer truck lost control and appeared to cause a crash.
The incident took place Friday, Dec. 23 at I-196 near the Hudsonville exit, when Jessica Zinn and her fiancé were taking their children out to have dinner.
Zinn says that while the drive there was okay, on the way back to their home in Rockford, "there were points where I had to look at the side rails to see if I was in the middle of the road, and I don't think I topped 35 miles per hour."
Being safe was a main priority, especially when there's passengers inside her truck that has a four wheel drive.
Checking the rearview mirror was also something that Zinn did frequently, and that's when she saw a semi coming up behind them.
Zinn was thinking that the driver was going to hit someone, and because she didn't want that someone to be her and her family, she moved over in the lane a little.
She says that the driver had plenty of time to stop in advance, but he didn't stop until he was already past them, and that's when he slid, causing another vehicle to go off the road.
Zinn believes everyone involved was fine, but she didn't see anyone get checked for injuries.
Then in just two minutes, the truck driver examined the damages to his vehicle, got back inside, and passed Zinn's family on the road again, she said.
"So obviously, he didn't learn his lesson if he passed us again," Zinn says. "So it was just kind of crazy."
Zinn's kids had started freaking out during the incident, so the first thing that went through her mind was to distract them, especially when her middle child said they thought they were going to die.
Zinn says she's driven through harsh conditions before, but nothing like this, especially when it's hard to see.
13 ON YOUR SIDE has reached out to Meijer for comment on the incident. We should note that that request was made after normal business hours, so we have not yet heard back.
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