Warning: The following is based upon actual events and may be too graphic for sensitive viewers.
At 6:30 am on Wednesday, the fire department responded to a call about a woman in distress with possible injury from the Williams residence. First responders were met by the eldest Williams daughter running out the front door in a panic, “Help!! Please hurry!!!”
Nearly as quickly as a responder entered the residence, he burst back out of the front door yelling for the Jaws of Life. “My God! I was not prepared for this! Get those Jaws of Life here, STAT!”
Fireman Jerry Neymeyer was overheard telling a police officer the gruesome details. “Her arms were…arms aren’t supposed to bend like that. And her neck. Oh God, her neck!” He choked back tears. “I’m afraid she may never recover…”
After 3 hours, Mrs. Williams was freed by the Jaws of Life. Her mangled body was placed on a stretcher and wheeled out to the ambulance, triggering a collective gasp and wails from the crowd of onlookers. Her neighbor and best friend, Judy Jenkins, forced her way onto the ambulance. “Oh, Deborah, how did this happen!” Judy cried. Deborah Williams, sobbing, described her horrific ordeal.
It had been a normal morning. She prepared her chia and kale smoothie and suited up for her morning jog. “I bought a new sports bra,” Williams explained breathing heavily with a weak voice, “I went a size down. I need… proper support.” Still sobbing uncontrollably, she repeated, “I just wanted proper support!”
“It wouldn’t come off,” she whispered. “And now look at me.” Deborah’s arms, legs, and neck were folded in contortionist fashion. She now looks like a cross between Linda Blair from The Exorcist and a soft pretzel. While free from her bra, her bones and ligaments refused to return to their original positions. She was simply bound for too long.
Update: We caught up with Mrs. Williams, and we are happy to report she has found purpose in life bringing awareness to high school youth about the dangers of exercising. Her new book Exercising: Is It Really Worth It? is due out this fall.
By Tommi Becker