That Langley resident Michael Bennett is alive today could be considered a miracle. Now, Bennett’s fiance, Kaily Stevens, is praying for one more miracle — that the couple can keep their wedding date at the end of August.
Bennett, 30, was seriously injured by a hit-and-run driver at Sun Peaks, near Kamloops, on July 19.
He was visiting the ski resort town to celebrate his brother’s stag. Around 2:30 a.m., Bennett and two others were walking along Sun Peaks Road. They had left a club and were returning to their hotel.
“They were walking single file along the shoulder of the road. Michael was in the back and using his flashlight on his phone so they could see,” said Stevens.
The three men heard a truck driving up behind them before it hit Bennett with such force, it sent him flying 20 feet in the air.
“There were no skid marks, (just) clear tire tracks off the road and then the truck driver drove off,” said Stevens.
“We are only guessing, but maybe the driver passed out, woke when he or she hit Michael, and drove off.”
Police said there would be damage to the truck.
Bennett’s brother and friend ran to his side. He was unconscious and badly injured. It took an ambulance 30 minutes arrive, before he was rushed to Royal Inland Hospital, where he spent seven days, doctors working to repair his broken body.
He has a skull fracture, with bleeding under the skull, a broken collar bone and multiple fractures in his pelvis.
“But we have been told he will heal, he will be back to normal one day. It’s truly a miracle,” said Stevens.
He was discharged on Saturday and returned to his Langley home, where he is in a body sling and still suffering from a concussion.
His road to recovery will take months, but he will recover, said Stevens.
She thanked the community of Langley for its support and prayers.
“All the phone calls and texts, all the prayers . . . we truly believe that is why Michael is doing so well,” she said.
“We have forgiven the driver. It was a horrible mistake they made.
“But we want this person to come forward — not to seek justice, but for the safety of themselves and others on the road. This person shouldn’t be driving,” said Stevens.
The truck involved is described as a dark-coloured, older model pickup truck, similar to a Chevy S-10.
Kamloops Rural RCMP investigators issued a plea for information and have said the driver would have known that he or she hit someone and may have told someone about it.
Lead investigator Const. Brett Foley said police are asking anyone with information about this hit and run or who knows of a vehicle fitting the suspect description, operating in the Sun Peaks area, to contact the Kamloops Rural RCMP at 250-314-1800 or Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-8477(TIPS).
The victim’s family has posted a $10,000 reward for information leading to a conviction.
For the $10,000 reward, call the Lambert and Williams Law Corporation in Victoria at 1-250-589-2174.