Man survives after falling tree strikes car
BILL BULEY | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 6 hours, 35 minutes AGO
This 2016 Ford Fusion driven by William Gonser of Sandpoint was smashed by a falling tree near Blanchard on Wednesday.
Photo courtesy Jennifer Gonser
Bill Buley covers the city of Coeur d'Alene for the Coeur d’Alene Press. He has worked here since January 2020, after spending seven years on Kauai as editor-in-chief of The Garden Island newspaper. He enjoys running. | December 19, 2025 1:00 AM
William Gonser was less than a minute from his job site Wednesday morning when a falling tree smashed into the front window of his 2016 Ford Fusion in Blanchard.
"It stopped us right where we were at," Jennifer Gonser said.
While his wife, Jennifer, and their two children were shaken, they were OK.
Not so for Gonser.
The Sandpoint man suffered fractures to his cheekbone and nose. A gash stretched from the bridge of his nose to halfway up his forehead. It took 60 stitches to piece him together at MultiCare Valley Hospital. He can't work for three weeks and more surgery may be necessary.
Jennifer Gonser, back home Thursday, said she was struggling with the freak accident that nearly killed her husband.
"I just can't comprehend what happened," she said.
She visited the wrecking yard to retrieve items from their totaled car and surveyed the damage. The windshield was shattered and gone on the driver's side, and the top of the car had been peeled away.
Her husband, somehow, survived.
"I don't understand how it happened," Jennifer Gonser said.
The family was southbound on Highway 41 and passing by Blanchard Community Church headed to William's worksite. They were almost there when the upper section of tree next to the roadway was snapped off by strong winds and spiraled into the car.
Jennifer, in the front passenger seat, said she didn't see it coming, but William, who was driving, did in the split second before impact. Their two children were in the backseat.
"The next thing I knew, it blew out the windshield," Jennifer said. "It ripped off the roof, just peeled it back and opened it like a can."
Dazed, but knowing she had to get her family to safety, Jennifer grabbed the children and carried them to a ditch on the side of the road while at the same time trying to keep tabs on her husband, who was bleeding badly from his head and had staggered from the car.
Medical help arrived soon. A first stop was at Newport Community Hospital, and then onto MultiCare in Spokane Valley.
William Gonser was discharged Wednesday night and is scheduled to see doctors again in two weeks. Meantime, he is resting at home, but in pain as he begins what is expected to be a long recovery.
Yet, there was relief his injuries weren't worse.
"He's doing OK," Jennifer Gonser said. "He's hanging in there."
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