My father was in a serious car accident

Here's an email I sent to many friends and family, posting here for posterity:

First off, many thanks to the flood of support from all of you. I've read your names and messages to my father so he's heard your support out loud.

I'm in El Paso with Sarah awaiting our flight back to San Diego. I will be returning to El Paso on my own at some point this week to continue addressing issues here.

There are a number of you that have not been updated very much this weekend. Frequent updates were sent to my father's direct family, but I wanted to summarize the situation for all concerned. I'm going to be somewhat detailed, but hopefully that won't bother or offend. If you don't want to be updated like this, please let me know.

On Thursday night, my father was traveling west on I-10 in Lordsburg, NM, about 140 miles west of El Paso, TX. Witnesses say that he was passing a vehicles in the left lane when his car lost control and rolled several times across the median, finally landing on all fours in the eastbound lane. He was life flighted to Thomason Hospital in El Paso and he's been in the ICU since.

When he arrived in the emergency room, he had lost a lot of blood, so much at one point that his blood pressure reduced to the point of his heart stopping. This lasted a total of eight minutes, but they successfully resuscitated him.

He has many fractured bones including his left clavicle, left scapula, two ribs, his thoracic vertebrae (T4), his left radius and ulna (wrist), and the right side of his skull. He is listed in critical condition, but stable. His most current issue of concern is dysrhythmia, an unstable rhythm of his heartbeat. It is not surprising, but the staff is watching that and hoping to stabilize it asap.

The latest decision this morning will be to remove his sedative, but it's a type that will leave his body slowly. They would like to induce consciousness and see if he will begin responding to staff. He's been under constant sedation since admittance in order to prevent movement and inadvertent injury. They do want to offer the opportunity for him to move on his own and to orient him in other than a very flat laid out position on his back.

He had fluid in his lungs, but that has been draining and progressively reducing in volume -- good progress. He had fluid in his abdomen, and they performed exploratory surgery which ended quickly after only thirty minutes with benign findings -- a good sign.

Neurology saw bruises on his brain in CT scans. They may causes seizures for him later in life due to their location, but they will not require surgery and the plan is to allow them to heal on their own -- a good thing.

Osteopathy (bone specialists) have accounted for all fractures at this time. They will decide how to address the wrist fractures. The thoracic fractures seem stable enough and those, along with the rib fractures, will be left to heal on their own -- uncomfortable, but good as they are stable.

He lost a lot of blood, but he's had a complete blood transfusion and is continuing to be administered blood products. He is still on 100% oxygen and his breathing is assisted for now as breathing on his own might complicate matters due to the effort for him.

I think that covers his physical condition. Very broad estimates suggest that he will be in intensive care for the next week or two. As a 79 year old person, he'll be recuperating slower than most. We are considering the best location for him to begin therapy and recuperation upon achieving the ability to relocate.

His brother and niece, Sally, from Long Island arrived yesterday around 5p and they had a chance to visit him last night. They will see his this afternoon and will be leaving tomorrow morning. I've been in touch with dad's wife, Charlotte, in NC as well so she's aware of the situation.

Sarah and I have to board the plane in minutes. Thanks again for all the well wishes. More to come.

Peace and love to you all,

Burt