Newton family gathers with Medstar crew
Friends and family members of Scott Newton braved the storming rain Saturday to help raise $4,600 to help with Newton's medical expenses following a May 11, 2018 experimental plane crash that left him hospitalized until June 29.
Held at the Flomaton Fire Station and sponsored in part by MedStar Ambulance, barbecue plates and raffle items helped raise the money.
Newton said he had hoped to show up for Saturday's event, but simply couldn't find the strength; however he issued his thanks.
"It really surprised me with all the businesses and individuals who donated and with all the people turning out to buy the barbecue," Newton said. "It shows you how much people care."
Newton, 47, is a native of Flomaton and grew up in McDavid and recently moved to Pensacola.
He said he purchased the experimental airplane and had it for about a year before the crash.
He said on May 11, he left from Atmore and reached about 600 to 700 feet when he felt something wasn't right.
"It felt like I was hanging from a string," he said. "The lower I got the more unstable the plane was."
He said he went through the top of a tree, which turned him upside down, then hit a power line.
Newton said he crashed into somebody's yard on Daw Lane, near Robinsonville Church.
He said when he crashed he crushed the right side of his face, breaking his jaw. He also said he knew his leg was broken.
Newton had a cell phone strapped to his leg and called his wife Lisa.
"I told her 'don't freak but I crashed'," he said.
He said he then called 911.
Newton said a neighbor of the vacant yard where he crashed, then first responders began arriving.
"I stayed conscious," he said. "I guess it was the adrenaline because I really had no pain. I knew my leg was broken and I knew my jaw was broken."
He said he could see the bone in his leg sticking out.
When he arrived by helicopter to a Pensacola hospital he learned he had a ruptured aorta.
"The doctor told me most people die from that," he said. "It was touch and go at the hospital."
He said he was told the right side of his face looked like a jigsaw puzzle.
At this point, he'd said it's going to be a long process, noting he can't put any weight on his leg for a year.
Newton said the crash totaled his plane and he has no plans to return to the air. He did say he had some scrap aluminum for sale if anyone is interested.
"It was my wake-up call," he said. "I didn't walk away from this one, but I survived. So I'm not going to do it again."
He said his day now revolves around therapy.
He said while in the hospital someone told him 'God had a little plan for you'.
