Plane Crash Survivor Says Feels Privileged
As the plane raced down the runway for takeoff, a gust of wind pushed the plane off course. In a split-second decision, Dan applied more power to the engines. But the plane didnt gain altitude. Instead, it hit two oak trees and crashed into a ravine. Jet fuel spilled all over the fuselage, soaking Dan. Then fire broke out.
David Darrah, who was late for a family cookout that same day and decided to take a shortcut past the airport, saw Dan's plane on fire and came to help.
"I saw that he was on fire," says David. "I tried to get down there, telling him, 'Stop, drop, and roll! Stop, drop, and roll!'"
David managed to put out the fire. It had burned clear through Dans jeans. Amazingly, Dans father and son were not injured.
Fortunately, David didn't sustain any burns, either. In fact, he says not even a single hair was singed.
"I was wearing Birkenstocks, shorts, and a T-shirt. Not a singed hair, not a burn, nothing. Amazing. I mean, theres no other explanation for it except a miracle," says David.
Emergency crews arrived and transported Dan to a local hospital. After a call from an emergency room doctor, Donna didnt get the feeling that Dans condition was critical. That is because Dr. Dan had been giving orders for his own medication.
"He told me that Dan was on life support systems, but he said hes in control and so I thought, Oh yeah, hes not so bad then. Hes in control, so hes telling them what to do," Donna recalls.
Donna had no idea what she was about to face. Dan was airlifted to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento where doctors realized the full extent of his injuries.
"Immediately, the doctor came out and spent some time with me and let me know that it was very critical," says Donna. " They set me straight right away that it was a life-and-death situation, that his age and his amount of burns over 50 percent of his body and very deep second-degree burns put him in that category."
Dan was placed in a medically induced coma for six weeks because of the pain. Third- and second-degree burns covered over 50 percent of his body. Also, breathing in burning jet fuel damaged his lungs. Even after many skin graft surgeries, the bones in his legs were still exposed.
"One day his heart was beating very rapidly, his kidneys, theres some elevation here or there, and the danger of infection all the time, so Id be up and down every day," Donna says.
Friends and family stationed themselves at the hospital, hoping for a bit of good news. Then Donna was told that Dans legs were burnt so severely that his legs might need to be amputated. But hope was not completely lost.
As doctors determined whether to amputate Dans legs, Bob Walker, Dans neighbor, sat across the street from the hospital having a cup of coffee -- and a chance encounter with a stranger.
"Hed asked where I was from, and I said San Diego and the reason I was there, and his immediate response was, 'I think we should pray,'" Bob explains. "This was such a beautiful prayer. Id never heard anybody pray like that. It encompassed the entire situation."
"Bob was pretty shook up, and he comes over to the hospital and finds out I get to keep my legs," says Dan.
Dan was now conscious and aware of his condition. Mark Weinegar, Dans rehabilitation doctor, prayed each morning with Dan and Donna. He tried to be hopeful but was very concerned.
Says Dr. Weinegar, "At the time, what I was most concerned about was that he worked in dental anesthesia where you really need really good fine motor control to do your work taking care of patients under anesthesia. I was hopeful but not very optimistic that he would get that function back again so that he could return to his occupation."
Dan had survived the first few months of second- and third-degree burns. But now he was faced with losing his dental anesthesia practice, a practice that took him to third world countries.
"I had always been involved in medical missions," says Dan. "When I became conscious enough to know what was happening, I committed to the Lord that Id make myself more available to do medical missions and this kind of thing."
From UC Davis Medical Center, Dan returned home to San Diego only to be admitted to another hospital. Dans legs still had exposed bone, and infection was a real concern.
"He had exposed bone, a lot of exposed tendons, very, very poor wound coverage," says plastic surgeon Dr. Mayer Tannenhaus. "They were really kind of scary looking, to be honest with you. We were really worried. The agreement we made together was that wed do everything that we could do to try to save his legs. I really thought wed have a shot."
Fortunately, as Dan explains, people all over the country and even overseas were praying for his recovery.
"I heard there were a group of Christians in Egypt praying for me. I think it was just the power of prayer that pulled it through," says Dan.
Eighteen months after his accident, Dan returned to his practice on a limited basis.
"I probably started a little sooner than most people would expect, but I discovered that if I used the nurse to work with me to give me two extra hands, I was able to plunge in a little bit sooner," says Dan. " I couldnt wait to get back."
Then six months later, Dan flew with a team of doctors to Trinidad City, Bolivia, to be part of an Operation Blessing medical mission. Thats where our 700 Club production crew first met him.
We asked Dr. Lee how it makes him feel to be a part of this.
He responded, "It makes me feel privileged. It makes me feel privileged that Gods willing to use me, that after all of this, God can still use me."
