Fender-bender leads to fatality

When his wife had an accident on I-75, he stopped to help. But he died trying to walk across I-275.

By HELEN ANNE TRAVIS, Times Staff Writer
Published August 17, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Courtesy of Blinn Family] Jack Blinn was struck by a Toyota SUV driven by Dwight Wood, 58, of Lutz. Wood, an assistant principal at Hillsborough High, was not charged in the accident.

WESLEY CHAPEL - They were supposed to go on vacation.

But Wednesday night, the night before their trip, Jack Blinn asked his wife, Barbara, if she wanted to make a little extra traveling money. He'd had a last-minute job offer to deliver some Yellowbooks. Would she mind postponing the RV trek to Fort Myers one more day?

Jack, 67, was retired. Barbara, 54, was on a two-week vacation from the New Port Richey Wal-Mart, where she dressed donuts and brownies in the bakery.

They agreed to wait.

"We should have went today," Barbara said Thursday afternoon. Her husband had been dead less than six hours.

The couple left their Holiday home early Thursday morning for Thonotosassa to pick up the Yellowbooks. They took two separate vehicles so they would have plenty of room.

She followed him.

Barbara rarely drove down Interstate 75. It was 6:30 a.m., rush-hour traffic into Tampa was building. The road was dark and crowded and she got confused at the Interstate 275 interchange.

She headed toward I-275, then realized Jack had stayed on I-75. She changed lanes too quickly and collided with a Chevrolet sport utility vehicle heading south on I-275. The Chevrolet pulled over onto the shoulder, and Barbara pulled over to the median between the two highways.

No one was injured. The property damage for both vehicles combined was less than $6,000, according to the Florida Highway Patrol, which is still investigating the crash.

Barbara called Jack.

He was just ahead of her, traveling south on I-75. He pulled his truck over, got out and walked to her car.

"He stopped to see if I was okay," Barbara said. "I told him I was calling 911."

Jack crossed I-275 to check on the driver of the Chevrolet, Jorge Miranda, 34, of Wesley Chapel. They spoke for a second, then Jack headed back across the highway to his wife.

"All I heard was a crashing sound," Barbara said.

Blinn was struck by a Toyota SUV driven by Dwight Wood, 58, of Lutz. Wood, an assistant principal at Hillsborough High, was not charged in the accident.

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A trooper drove Barbara to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, where an ambulance had taken Jack.

Barbara told the trooper about her family.

They had two daughters, and Jack had a son and a daughter from previous marriages. They have one grandson.

She and Jack would celebrate their 27th anniversary Aug. 29. Jack's birthday was in less than two weeks.

She worked for him for 10 years during their marriage. Jack had owned several gas stations and car repair shops in St. Petersburg and New Port Richey. She pumped gas and helped him with oil changes.

"It takes some kind of woman to work for her husband that long," Barbara said.

At 8 a.m. Thursday Jack died. Barbara didn't get to say good-bye.

"I didn't get to say 'I love you,' " she said.

The couple's daughters, Holly and Jacke, brought their mother home from the hospital. She spent Thursday night with one daughter. She'll spend tonight with the other.

"And we'll go from there," Barbara said, "one day at a time."

Helen Anne Travis can be reached at 352 521-6518 or htravis@sptimes.com

[Last modified August 16, 2007, 23:48:17]