Minnesota Prairie Roots

TWO DAYS AFTER A SERIOUS car-motorcycle crash by our house, I’m ready to write about this traumatizing event.

First and foremost, I am thankful that the motorcyclist, Scott Hoffbeck, 61, of Farmington survived. He was critically injured and listed in stable condition Thursday morning at St. Mary’s Hospital in Rochester, according to Faribault police. Hoffbeck was taken directly to the Faribault airport and airlifted out within an hour of the 9:06 p.m. Wednesday crash.

Those are the basic facts. The cause of the crash, which happened at the intersection of Willow Street and Tower Place, remains under investigation. The driver of the car, identified as Abdirahman Harun, 20, of Faribault, was not injured.

GRATEFUL

The story I want to share today is one of gratitude and recognition of two individuals who rendered aid to the motorcyclist before emergency personnel arrived. They are my husband, Randy, and a passing motorist whom I flagged down to help. I firmly believe that, if not for Randy and Rosa (not her real name, because I did not ask permission to use it), Scott may not have survived or could have experienced additional injuries.

Shortly after hearing the crash, Randy and I looked out the front living room window to see a motorcycle lying in the street, the motionless driver beside it. We raced out of our house to help, me barefoot and Randy in his socks. We feared initially that the motorcyclist was dead. But as I neared the biker, I could hear his ragged breathing. It’s a sound unlike any I’ve ever heard and my fear of his imminent death grew.

While Randy was on the phone with 911, the driver of the car was also, asking me for our address to summon help. I prayed aloud for the motorcyclist, whose name I did not yet know.

In a situation like this, time stands still and moments fly and everything seems surreal and unreal and overwhelming. All I wanted was for EMTs or paramedics to arrive, care for this man and get him on his way to a trauma center.

HELPING HOWEVER WE COULD

But while we waited for first responders, we did what we could. I knew I couldn’t handle being next to Scott, seeing his severe head injury up close. Observing his head trauma from a short distance was too graphic for me, causing me to turn away.

I did what I could. And that was to stand in the middle of the street, waving my arms over my head in the hopes that oncoming traffic would see me, slow down and avoid hitting Scott and Randy. I feared in the dark of evening, on our busy street, that they would be run over.

I asked stopped motorists if anyone had medical training. None did. But Rosa responded anyway, exiting her car to go to Scott’s side. I shall be forever grateful for her calm, loving and supportive response. Returning from an out-of-town meeting, Rosa followed a different route home than usual, taking her right to the scene of the crash. Later she would use her brand-new blazer, a gift from her father, to cradle Scott’s head and prevent additional debris from entering his head wound.

Randy remained with Scott the entire time, kneeling in the street beside him, holding his hand, keeping him still, comforting and assuring him that an ambulance was coming. Only after Scott was loaded onto a stretcher did Randy step away. He stayed calm throughout.

I, in the meantime, comforted the young driver of the car, wrapping my arms around him, holding him, gripping his shaking arms. He was clearly traumatized.

WILLOW STREET HISTORY

We’ve responded to past vehicle crashes on Willow Street, once taking in two young women on a cold November night after their car plowed into the back of a parked vehicle. Not even a year ago, a two-vehicle chase resulted in a Suburban going out of control, knocking down the power pole by our house, crossing our yard (barely missing our house) and taking out a newly-stained fence panel. Drivers of both vehicles fled the scene. Twenty years ago, our son was struck by a hit-and-run driver while crossing Willow Street on the way to his bus stop. He was not seriously injured. There have been other crashes along this arterial street within eyesight of our home. Too many to list.

But the car-motorcycle crash on Wednesday ranks as the worst. Words do not adequately convey the extent of trauma we saw, heard, felt and experienced. I am grateful for Scott’s survival and pray he makes a full recovery. I also hope the young man driving the car will be alright. It’s been a lot to process. For all of us.

© Copyright 2026 Audrey Kletscher Helbling