GREENSBORO, N.C. — Briana Beasley says she was driving down I-73 South in Greensboro on her way home, as is her routine, when the unthinkable happened. A car traveling in front of Beasley with a mattress tied to the top of it fell off, and came crashing through her windshield. "It was definitely scary," she said. "I was crying, I was in a complete state of shock."
Here's how it happened:
"When I merged over I happened to be behind a car quite a bit in front of me," Beasley said. "Then, I see the top mattress like, lift off the vehicle in the air, it was kind of like a Final Destination {the movie} moment." She said it flipped several times on the way toward her car. "It flipped and flipped and flipped then smashed through my windshield."
By nothing short of a miracle, she was able to make it to the break down lane even though her line of sight was ruined.
She jumped out of her now-totaled Mercedes, and saw the car speed off.
"The worst part is, they knew it flew off and they kept driving and didn't stop to see if I was hurt, or even conscious."
Even though the two cars never made contact, Greensboro Police classified it as a Hit and Run because they left the scene of a crime.
"Accidents happen, but you don't just leave, I don't understand that."
Beasley got a good look at the car before the mattress fell onto hers.
"It stood out, and I know my cars," Beasley said.
Greensboro Police are looking for a silver Nissan Sentra. Whoever the driver is, faces a Hit & Run charge, plus a citation for 'Failing to Secure a Load.' That citation comes with a near-$300 dollar price tag.
Beasley says she's offering a small reward for anyone with information on the Nissan Sentra, and the person who sped off without checking on her.
"It was a very specific car, very specific timing, so someone has to know something," Beasley stressed. 'Someone knows somebody that was moving mattresses that day, driving a Nissan Sentra."
She says she's just lucky she walked away with a couple of scratches, and whiplash.
"Even though I’m sitting here talking, I could not be here talking – I could have been killed or severely hit just by a mattress hitting my windshield, and it's little things like that I don’t think people think about."
Trooper Baker with Highway Patrol says there's a general rule when it comes to securing items on your car.
"Anything that's less than 10,000 pounds would have to be secured at two points," Trooper Baker stated. "Anything more than 10,000 pounds has to be anchored down at 4 individual points."
Other than help with finding the driver, Beasley has one final plea:
"If you are transporting things please, please, please make sure you’re transporting them safely," she said. "It only took 30 seconds for me to be behind somebody for that to happen."