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Man survives 6 days trapped in car wreck by drinking drainpipe water underneath I-94 bridge
Images via ABC 7 Eyewitness News (screenshots)

Man survives 6 days trapped in car wreck by drinking drainpipe water underneath I-94 bridge

A man was trapped for nearly a week in car wreckage underneath the I-94 interstate freeway until pedestrians walked by and saw the dismantled vehicle.

Matt Reum of Indiana appeared to have driven off I-94, missed the guardrail, and flew through the air in his pickup truck until crashing into a creek beneath the bridge, CNN reported.

From there, Reum was trapped for six days pinned to his driver seat, unable to move his legs.

The 27-year-old survived by filtering water — presumed to be dirty — through his shirt after it dripped down from a drainpipe.

"There was a drainpipe right above him, so there was rainwater coming down when it rained, and he would use his shirt to filter it while he drank it,” Zachary Swets from Portage Fire Department told a CNN affiliate.

Reum also used "an air bag that had deployed" as a blanket whenever he got cold.

It took nearly a week before two men, Mario Garcia and Nivardo Delatorre, came across Reum while out for a walk on their way to a local Bass Pro Shop.

"I can't really, I don't know about the address, but there's a car that's been here since Wednesday, and there's a person inside of it. He's still alive, too," one of the men said on a 911 call. "They're on their way, buddy. They're on the way," the man was heard telling Reum, who was still trapped.

Fire department officials said that upon their arrival Reum gave them his journal that he had been writing in during the days he was trapped.

"He was smiling, laughing, making jokes," another fireman said.

A GoFundMe started by Reum's friend Haley Traxler detailed some of his injuries, which may require amputation.

"His legs were stuck and he was unable to move due to that he is looking at an amputation more than likely," the page read. "He has several broken bones throughout his body. He is alive and that’s what we care about most through this hard time he needs all the love and support he can get."

Traxler described Reum as a "kind hearted human," and noted that he works for a field construction and metal fabrication union in Hobart, Indiana.

At the time of this publication the fundraiser had raised approximately $101,000.

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Andrew Chapados

Andrew Chapados

Andrew Chapados is a writer focusing on sports, culture, entertainment, gaming, and U.S. politics. The podcaster and former radio-broadcaster also served in the Canadian Armed Forces, which he confirms actually does exist.
@andrewsaystv →