CHESAPEAKE, Va. — A Chesapeake father is begging drivers not to speed through neighborhoods, as his wife and dog are fighting to recover from a hit and run.
Last week Chesapeake Police reported a woman was hit by a car at the intersection of Whistle Town Road and Fernham Lane. They arrested and charged Michelle McKeown, 33, for a felony hit and run.
It all happened on December 9.
“We were walking our dog at 7:30 in the morning as we always do,” said Mike Rushak.
Mike and his wife Linda were steps from their front door with their dog Koda.
“I could hear a car approaching very fast from behind,” he said.
Mike said there was no time to react. “My wife was being taken off of her feet, thrown into the air and down into the street.”
He said the driver kept going, dragging their dog under the car for several feet.
“Until he came out from under the car as the car continued speeding out of the neighborhood,” Mike said.
In those chaotic moments, his community took the wheel. Mike said a man named Tim Jones was the first to his wife’s side.
“He happened upon us on the way to work,” Mike recalled. “He said, 'I am an FBI agent, I have a trauma kit, let me take over.' He provided life-saving measures. So I thank him for doing what he did that day.”
His list of thank yous goes on. He’s grateful for the officers that arrested McKeown for the hit and run. He said paramedics and Sentara Norfolk General hospital staff have been amazing.
The community even covered Koda’s medical bills. He is recovering at Edinburgh Animal Hospital.
“A broken leg, a broken jaw, and Dr. Heather Price saved his life,” Mike said.
Mike hasn’t left his wife’s side. He said doctors are running tests, but Linda is slowly getting better.
“Lord, is she fighting, I can see it in her eyes,” Mike said. “When they open her eyes to do the pupil test, I can see the fight in them.”
The seconds that changed the Rushak family, happened right in their own neighborhood.
He is begging drivers to pump the brakes and pay attention.
“Neighborhoods are for families, they are for walking pets,” he said. “It is not a racetrack.”
Family friends started a GoFundMe to help with their medical bills and expenses while Linda is out of work. In just a few days, it’s raised more than $13,000.
