The Accident

So there I was, 27 years old and really diving into my design program at RISD.

But October 16, 1986, had other plans for me. That day started with a major 5-alarm fire raging through the historic Outlet building in downtown Providence. The blaze was so fierce, it looked almost like the devil’s handiwork! As we watched the chaos unfold from our bus, little did we know that our own day was about to take a dramatic turn.

My classmates and I—about 15 of us, plus our professor—were headed to a factory to observe and learn about different manufacturing processes. The atmosphere on the bus was buzzing with curiosity and anticipation, but there was also a lingering sense of unease after seeing the fire.

The second incident of the day felt almost like a premonition once we were inside the factory. I found myself standing next to the man giving us the tour, and prompted by all my past field trips where strict safety protocols like hardhats, goggles, and marked lines were the norm, I randomly asked if they’d ever had any accidents there. I noticed right away that this tour seemed strangely absent of all those usual precautions, which made my question to the tour guide—who turned out to be the owner of the plant—even more pressing.

He assured me there had been no accidents but then pointed to the machine in front of us, which he’d just switched on, and warned, “This one won’t burn you on the surface—it’ll put a hole right through you.”

Well let me tell you…he no sooner got those words out of his mouth, and less than a millisecond later I get hit with high voltage from that machine which entered through my left knee and held me in place for what seemed like an eternity before blowing a hole through my chest on the way out.

I’m not sure if your heart just stopped reading this, but mine literally did stop that day and I had a complete out of body experience where I was floating above everyone in that factory and could see all my classmates…and a body on the ground while struggling to get back to help that young soul not even realizing it was my body I was trying to save. I’m saving some of this event to share with you all in a podcast, so stay tuned.

Want to talk about professional development now?

Let’s move on, like I had to do with the rest of my life.