‘Prayed endlessly for her family:’ Family reacts to Mathews Bridge accident

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Action News Jax continues to follow a story that happened on the Mathews Bridge early Tuesday morning.

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A 20-year-old woman is fighting for her life after being hit by a car changing a flat tire. Now the woman who was a passenger in the car that hit her is sharing her side of the story.

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Action News Jax spoke with that woman and her sister who says it wasn’t anyone’s fault.

Emily Anderson and her sister Elizabeth tell us mother nature was to blame.

They say on the night the crash happened, there was very dense fog. Elizabeth Anderson says she and her husband were actually on a roadside assistance call when the crash happened.

Emily Anderson is counting her blessings after her sister Elizabeth and Elizabeth’s husband Shane Jeffers were involved in that serious car accident.

Related Story: Woman speaks out after her sister was hit by car on Matthews Bridge in Jacksonville

We’re told Elizabeth and Shane were traveling to help someone when they hit 20-year-old Denay Josey, who was on the bridge.

Two black eyes, a now stitched-up head, and a noticeable limp, are what Elizabeth Anderson is dealing with after this crash.

“I sleep maybe two hours at a time. I wake up with flashes. I guess that is because my brain blocked it out when it was happening, I’m not sure,” says Elizbeth Anderson.

A Florida traffic crash report says the driver was driving too fast for the conditions.

Emily Anderson doesn’t blame her brother-in-law. She blames mother nature due to the dense fog that night.

“I think 10 miles an hour would’ve been too fast for those road conditions. I believe the speed limit for the bridge is 45 miles per hour. I don’t think anyone in their right mind, which my brother-in-law is, would’ve been going over 20 miles an hour,” says Emily Anderson.

For now, Elizabeth and Emily say they are praying for 20-year-old Denay Josey.

“We have prayed endlessly for her family, for my family all parties involved. This should have not happened,” says Emily Anderson.

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A GoFundMe has been created for Elizbeth and her husband.