‘Doctors are very encouraged’: Mother gives update after off-duty UAB police officer injured in three-vehicle crash on I-65

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Ala. (WBRC) - An off-duty UAB police officer was injured in a three vehicle crash that happened Tuesday evening on I-65 S near Gardendale.

Authorities with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency confirm the crash happened near mile marker 270 on I-65 S just beyond the Fieldstown Road exit.

Officials confirmed the off-duty UAB police officer was injured in the wreck.

The officer’s mother, Amy King, said her son Tyler was the officer injured in the wreck. Amy allowed WBRC to post this information about her son’s injuries and recovery process:

“I know many of you have been praying for our son, Tyler King. He was in a car accident on his way to work as a UAB police officer yesterday evening. He has many injuries; a small liver laceration, bruised lung, broken vertebrae, broken foot, one broken rib, separated shoulder. Those are minor. The most significant injuries are two cranial fractures along with multiple sites of bleeding on the brain. Those have caused brain swelling. In short, he has a traumatic brain injury. We do not know the extent of the damage yet. The next 48 to 72 hours are critical. He was sedated and on a ventilator since last night, but they have now removed the ventilator and he is breathing completely on his own. It is unclear at this time how much brain damage he has sustained. He attempts to respond to commands even when he can’t quite do what he’s being asked to do (they call it purposeful movements). He is a fighter, a bit combative when he wakes up, which is a good sign.

I will try to provide updates as often as I can. We are so grateful for all of the prayers. Please keep them coming. We know that God is in control of this and He will not give us more than we can handle. We feel so blessed to have the best friends and family that a person could ask for. We also can’t say enough good things about the UAB staff. They have taken very good care of us.

We love y’all and we just ask that you keep praying.”

On Dec. 3, Amy King gave this update:

“This morning he woke up a little bit. He was still moaning in pain, but was answering the typical questions like, “What is your name?” and “Where are you?” He seemed to be answering a little quicker than before. It had been taking a lot of prodding to get him to answer questions. He also said, “Love you too,” and “Miss you too.” At this point, his doctors feel like he will be able to avoid brain surgery. We are close to the end of the 72 hour window. He may even be moved to a step down unit today. His doctors are very encouraged. We still have a long journey ahead of us, but he’s headed in the right direction.

We are grateful to God for these improvements. We know that He is our healer. We are also thankful that he is at UAB. The care we have received is excellent. Finally, we are grateful for our community of friends and family that have been so good to us. Tyler’s UAB coworkers and friends are also precious. I can’t adequately express my gratitude right now. I will continue to post updates when there are significant changes. Thank you all.”

All lanes of traffic were blocked because of the crash, but the roadway opened to traffic again around 8 p.m.

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