In more than twenty-five years as a reporter/columnist, use of the word surreal has been limited.
The previous time occurred during a summary of the federal corruption trial for Mayor Tony Mack.
Maybe a handful of other occasions surreal found a position in a sentence.
The word returns after one person died in an accident just off Alternate U.S. Route 1 in Lawrence.
It’s surreal when one finds a dump truck seemingly perched atop Colonial Lake. The scene first resembled a levitation stunt by illusionist David Blaine.
The incident turned weirder when eyewitnesses revealed that a silver car lay submerged underneath the wheels of the dump truck.
“What are you talking about?”
“There’s a car under the water. The dump truck rear-ended it near the light, broke through the guard rail and both (vehicles) went into the lake,” a man said.
Absolutely freaky but believable when rescue squads arrived, including at least one diver who dressed for action then slipped into the chilly Colonial Lake waters.
Moods changed as a crowd gathered before police officers cordoned an area along Route 1. Death talk emerged as confirmations about a car moved from mouth to ears and then other mouths.
The door to the cab of the red dump truck had swung open while the driver, alive, appeared frozen in time or posed like a wax figure in Madame Tussaud’s showcase.
A wrecker eventually extricated the dump truck. Next, a smaller two truck backed toward the lake’s bank, confirming talk about a second vehicle.
Rescue squads constructed a row of white sheets in the distance as cover for at least one deceased. The vehicle, a Nissan Altima, almost had disintegrated. Metal had twisted, crumpled, and compacted.
Tow line attached, a car in Colonial Lake came up for air and sunlight as rescuers immediately draped a white sheet over the driver seat area.
Death offered another grand perspective for life.
“One minute you’re parked at a traffic light and then the next they are pulling your dead body out of a lake. It’s sad and hard to understand,” a bystander offered.
That’s what makes life special, especially for those who understand that another day, hour, minute, even second, is a special gift. The next time you’re stopped at a traffic light, think about it.
Thanks to all the firefighters, rescuers, police officers, volunteers, and everyone else who contributed efforts during this extremely surreal moment of life.
Prayers and best wishes for all involved.
— L.A. Parker is a Trentonian columnist. Reach him at email@example.com. Twitter@laparker6.