“The airbags didn't deploy,” the 81-year-old singer said. “I don't know if that was a blessing or a curse.”
Gilley suffered a broken ankle and fractured shoulder after the car he and his son were in flipped at an intersection to avoid another car, KTRK reported.
Gilley said his son was driving a Toyota Scion northbound on U.S. 59 as they headed toward the singer’s home in Branson, Missouri. When another car crossed in front of them at an intersection, Gilley’s son swerved to avoid it and their car flipped, KTRK reported.
“It was like slow motion,” Gilley told KTRK. “The unbelievable feeling you get when you know you're going to hit something and there's nothing you can do about it.”
He remembers his son cutting him out of his seat belt. He was photographed in a red jacket after he was rescued.
“At 81, I'm very lucky. When I open my shows now, I tell the people I just turned 81, I hope I look like I'm 50. I walk like I'm 90,” Gilley said. "So I'm gonna be walking like I'm 100 now, with this boot on my left leg.”
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