Tennessee man recovering after being impaled by bale spear

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — Jeremy Roberts was loading equipment onto a trailer Tuesday night with another worker when the unthinkable happened.

A tractor parked up the hill from where they were working in experienced a parking brake malfunction, causing the tractor to roll down the hill, pinning both Roberts and the worker.

“The front end loader had a bale spear on it,” Roberts, of Greeneville, Tennessee , said. “The spear actually punctured my back and come out my side.”

Roberts told NewsNation affiliate WJHL that when the incident happened, neither he nor the worker had their cellphones within reach.

“We hollered for help for what seemed like forever, but some neighbors down the road heard, they came up and helped us,” Roberts said. “Once I moved around and realized that I couldn’t move up and down, I felt behind and realized that the spear had went through me, and at that point I felt that this was it, that I was I wasn’t going to make it.”

Once EMTs arrived, Roberts said he asked for his cellphone to call his wife, Jennifer.

“He said, ‘I need you to listen very closely to me, I love you so very much no matter what happens, you’re going to be OK, the Lord’s going to take care of you and our beautiful family,'” Jennifer Roberts said. “At that point, I asked him what was wrong, and he said, ‘I’ve been in a very very bad accident.'”

Jennifer Roberts said she wasn’t sure if she was going to see her husband again.

“That’s not a phone call that anyone ever wants to hear from your husband, your best friend to call you and tell you goodbye,” she said.

The spear did not puncture any vital organs or leave Roberts paralyzed. He said God was with him every step of the way.

“You’ll never convince me that God wasn’t in the midst,” he said. “I don’t care what anybody has to say, I know he was there.”

Roberts is now at home with his family recovering, with the help of bed rest and physical therapy. He said he wants to thank friends, family, Ballad Health and even strangers who showed their support for him and his family.

“It’s just been unreal how people have reached out to us, come to see us, brought us food,” Roberts said. “We hadn’t asked for any of that, but they’re wanting to.”

Tammy Stanton, owner of the Funny Farm and family friend of the Roberts’, is having a fundraiser for the family.

“We hope to help raise money to offset the costs of his medical bills, I can’t even imagine the bills that they’re about to see and also, he’s out of work for God knows how long,” Stanton said. “They own their own business and being a small business, they need all the help they can get.”

On Sept. 28, the Funny Farm will have a silent auction from 2-6 p.m. All proceeds and admission fees will go to the Roberts family.

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