An Illinois woman says she survived a near-fatal e-scooter collision in July 2024 that left part of her brain protruding from her forehead and her heart stopped for more than a minute.
Savanah White, 28, and her then seven-year-old son, Malakye, were crossing an intersection on July 24 when a car struck their e-scooter, according to an account published by the Daily Mail. White told the outlet they were heading to a gas station for ice cream when the vehicle hit them, tossing them about 25 feet into the air and onto the concrete.
White described smashing her face on the pavement and suffering massive craniofacial trauma. She said she broke 26 bones in her face and that “part of my brain had actually come out of my forehead.” White told the Daily Mail she was “clinically dead for a minute and 24 seconds” after her heart stopped, a condition her family said followed oxygen deprivation to her brain and the organ’s inability to send a signal to restart her heart. A chaplain was reportedly summoned to discuss last rites and funeral arrangements with her family.
Medical care for White included multiple surgeries, a skin graft taken from a previous C-section scar to cover the forehead wound, and the placement of metal plates to reconstruct her facial bones, the Daily Mail reported. Doctors also treated a broken pelvis, a collapsed lung, two strokes and an aneurysm. White was hospitalized for three weeks. Her son was hospitalized as well with a broken leg and required two head surgeries.
White said she did not fully regain consciousness for six days and that on awakening she initially denied the crash had occurred. She recounted ripping out a tracheostomy tube and trying to leave the hospital to return to her child until staff gave her a mirror and she recognized her injuries.
More than a year after the collision, White and her son have largely recovered physically, the Daily Mail reported, though she still bears a scar on her forehead and says she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. The outlet reported that damage to her facial bones has left her unable to smell and that she remains fearful of driving. White described a near-death experience in which she said she traveled through a tunnel of light and chose to return to life to care for her son.
Local reports at the time of the crash said police were investigating and looking for suspects, but the Daily Mail said it was unable to secure further updates on the case. It was not clear from the account whether White or her son were wearing helmets when struck.
The case highlights risks associated with micromobility vehicles and pedestrian collisions that emergency physicians and trauma surgeons have warned can produce devastating injuries. Severe facial trauma can require complex reconstructive surgery and can produce lasting functional impairments, including loss of smell when olfactory structures are damaged or nasal passages are blocked.
White’s account was provided to the Daily Mail and summarized in its report. The outlet did not provide additional on-the-record statements from treating physicians or law enforcement in its coverage.