How a 12-year-old recalled tire caused a crash that killed one man, paralyzed another
Rene Stutzman | Sentinel Staff Writer
November 24, 2008
SANFORD - The tire was a Firestone ATX, the subject of one of the nation's biggest consumer-product recalls. Millions of Americans read or heard news reports about it in 2000 and 2001, warning that it was dangerous.
But for a decade this particular tire was just a spare, bolted to the underside of an aging Ford Explorer.
A lawsuit settled in October revealed how in 2005 -- long after consumers and mechanics had stopped checking -- this tire did exactly what safety officials feared: It shredded at 65 mph.
Rotated into service on the right rear hub of the 1993 sport utility vehicle, the tire flew apart on Interstate 4 near Sanford, and the Explorer went out of control.
Its driver, Michael Enriquez, a Deltona father of four on his way home from work, hit the brakes. The vehicle skidded across the median, flipped and plowed head-on into an Infiniti driven by Douglas George Gibson, 56, of Orlando.
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Michael is a wonderful father and it is a shame what this accident has done. He is strong and with the love and support from his mother, 4 kids and his friends and family who truely care about him he will get through this. STRONGER AND BETTER!!!
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