LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. — It was supposed to be a relaxing Memorial Day weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks. But for one Lee’s Summit teen, last weekend had painful and life-changing consequences.
Jessica Davis, 16, was tubing on the lake over the weekend when she was seriously injured when the tube she was riding hit a larger boat’s wake. The jolt sent her airborne, and in a split-second her life changed.
“I just looked at my leg and it was crossed over my right leg and formed in a perfect curve, the thigh bone was curved, and I started screaming,” said Davis, who suffered a broken femur and a fractured hip in the accident. She was later in surgery for over five hours as doctors installed a titanium rod and two pins into her leg and hip.
“It’s extremely hard for your femur to break,” said Davis. “It’s one of the toughest bones in the body, and my surgeon was shocked that this happened from a tubing accident because she usually sees fractures like this in major car accidents – major, major accidents.”
Davis says that she had a lot of plans this summer – family trips to Colorado and Florida, and a study-abroad program in France. But instead, she’ll have to spend at least the next six weeks off her feet, and even then she’s not sure when life will return to normal.
“It was upsetting seeing (family and friends) walk into my room and be able to walk out whenever they left, and I just stay there,” said Davis.
Still, Davis says that she is counting her blessings, because she landed back on the tube. If she had fallen into the water with a broken femur, she’s not sure what would have happened.
“My friends keep telling me that it could have been much worse, it could have it could have been fatal and I still think about that a lot,” said Davis.
Davis’ family says that they know tubing can be safe, but they’re still getting rid of theirs. The Memorial Day weekend accident is an experience that Davis says she never wants to go through again.
“It could be worse, but it could have been avoided altogether,” said Davis.
