Any mother will tell you that motherhood isn’t for the faint of heart.
If you needed more proof of that statement, then you need look no further than this tale of a 23-year-old mother based in Queensland in Australia.
Fiona Simpson was driving her baby daughter and her 78-year-old grandmother back home when a sudden hailstorm, known as a supercell storm, struck suddenly over Queensland.
Simpson hadn’t heard a single warning, so she and her family were caught in their car on the road as freezing rain pelted down.
To put this into perspective, this storm reached wind speeds of 62 miles per hour and resulted in the disconnection of power for over 10,000 people.
The storm was so bad that Simpson couldn’t see the road ahead of her, forcing her to drive very slowly.
She soon realized this was too dangerous, and they pulled over on the roadside to wait until it blew over.
But then, hail as large as tennis balls began to brutally attack the car, and the windows were quickly shattered through.
The back window wound up entirely gone – and Simpson’s daughter was in the back seat.
There was no time to think. Everything happened too quickly.
Simpson immediately knew her daughter was in danger and leaped over the seats to get to her.
She quickly covered her daughter’s body with her own, acting as a human shield.
What followed was more extremely loud, deafening crashes as ice continued to rain down, falling through the open windows.
It was terrifying, but Simpson knew she had no time to be frightened.
When she glanced down, her little girl was crying and screaming, but the storm was so loud Simpson could only see, not hear.
She knew she had to stay put and protect her, or the baby could be hurt or even killed.
When the storm began to finally abate, Simpson was able to drive the badly damaged car to a safe location. She phoned an ambulance.
Her daughter suffered only a few bruises, but Simpson was severely injured.
In the ambulance, as they rode to the hospital, Simpson realized that her body ached all over and she could barely move.
But even so, she was still worried about her daughter. When she saw the extent of her injuries, she knew she could have lost her daughter if she hadn’t acted fast.
She took to Facebook to share images of the injuries she underwent, adding that she’d learned to never drive through a hailstorm, ever.
Simpson’s grandmother was seriously injured in the wake of the storm. Simpson was covered in grisly bruises and knew she’d be sore the next day.
But Simpson’s daughter had a couple of bumps and was completely fine.
It wasn’t long before comments were pouring in from all around the world.
Parents praised Simpson’s quick thinking, calling her a true wonder woman and a warrior.
Her heroic actions have even caused Annastacia Palaszczuk, the premiere for the province, to decide to nominate her for a special bravery award.
Even with all this praise, Simpson stays humble.
She says that all she did was be a mother – she protected her daughter, and that’s something she would do no matter what and at her own expense.
She also added that her car can be fixed or replaced and that their injuries can heal; what truly matters is that she and her family are alive and safe.
