Couple that survived fall from highway bridge shares their story with Fox 4

A couple who survived a fall from a highway bridge in their pickup truck last week said they thought they would die.

Kenneth and Janice Lively are now recovering at home after a suspenseful ordeal last week on Highway 175 between Crandall and Seagoville.

Crandall police say a 27-year-old woman was texting, veered into the couple’s lane and then clipped their Ford F-250, forcing it into a the guard rail.

“We were sliding along and I thought of my gosh we're going to go over..ohhh…we're going over and I didn't remember seeing the ground maybe I shut my eyes,” said Janice.

The couple plunged 35 feet down into the mud, missing the East Fork Trinity River by a few feet.

“Had it been August and the ground was hard dry and everything we would have been gone,” said Kenneth.

Strangers pulled over and tried to help. Rescuers eventually hoisted the Lively's to safety. Crandall police issued the other driver three traffic tickets for neglect collision, unsafe speed going too fast for conditions, and failure to drive in a single lane.

Police say she’s fighting all three.

This is the second serious crash for 75-year-old Kenneth and 78-year-old Janice, after getting hit by another driver in January.

“Our God, he was driving with me that day otherwise I'd been dead and I think he probably won’t ride with me anymore he said it’s just too dangerous to ride with you,” said Kenneth.

The Lively's plan to advocate for stricter laws addressing texting and driving.

The driver told police a coyote jumped out in front of her SUV on the bridge causing her to swerve, but Crandall police say several witnesses confirm seeing her serve in and out of her lane for several miles.