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A hero wife in Colorado has saved the day for much of her family, but her husband was killed in a freak accident when a boulder smashed through the windshield of the car. In Snowmass Canyon, Colorado, a Kansas City man, Tom Murphy, was instantly killed when a boulder suddenly fell through his front windshield as he drove his family home from vacation.

Hero Wife Saves Family - But Boulder Kills Driver on Mountain Road

The mother then had to deal with the tragedy and still think quickly to save her family. She was able to take control of the car and guide it to safety, as the children sat in the backseat, preventing it from becoming an even worse tragedy.


The Denver Post reports, "She immediately put the car in neutral, but it didn't slow down because they were on a downhill stretch on Colorado 82 about 4 miles southeast of Basalt. So, she grabbed the wheel with her right hand and pressed her left hand against the brakes." More on the harrowing ride here and Jennifer Murphy, 42, the mom that reacted so quickly "said they were heading to Denver for a night before going home to Kansas City, Mo., after deciding to leave Snowmass a day early because of bad weather."

A photo of the smashed car is at Media Bistro. "Boulders fall down up there pretty much every day," said Colorado State Trooper David Hall. "It's not like this was a 1,000-foot boulder perched perilously over the highway. It was a briefcase-sized boulder."