Los Angeles - A US woman tweeted about a horrific car crash in real time - before finding out her husband was killed in the accident, police said on Thursday.
Caran Johnson, 47, follows police scanner exchanges with her Twitter account @ScanCouver, and began tweeting about the accident on Wednesday afternoon, The Seattle Times reported.
“This accident sounds horrible,” she wrote in her first tweet, following up with “omg that is so horrible!!!” as details emerged of the accident on the 205 freeway in the north-western US state of Washington.
Then she grew increasingly worried when she didn't hear from her husband.
“I'm trying not to panic, but my husband left work early and he drives 205 to get home. He's not answering his phone,” Johnson wrote.
Her next tweets, cited by the Times and screen captured by the kgw.com news website in neighbouring Oregon state, became more and more frantic.
“And he's late,” she said. “Well he used his bluetooth, so he would answer his phone. He also wasn't feeling good so his work was concerned when he left.”
“I'm a basket case.
“I just called his work and he was feeling faint when he left work #panic.”
She continued: “What do I do now? he might have pulled over because he was feeling faint and then passed out or had a seizure. he has epilepsy.”
“How long do i wait for him to come home before I call the police?” Johnson added.
“I just called 911 and they transferred me after I gave them his licence number and told me that they will call me back. wtf?
“And now my kids are home from school.”
Finally, she bluntly tweeted: “it's him. he died.”
Her husband Craig Johnson, also 47, died after his Hyundai Elantra crossed a traffic median near the town of Vancouver, just north of the Oregon state line, according to Washington State Patrol spokesman Trooper William Finn.
He struck a Toyoto pickup driven by a 54-year-old woman, who suffered a broken femur, collapsed lung and broken pelvis, Finn told AFP.
Officers went to Johnson's home to break the news of her husband's death, but Johnson already seemed to know.
“Her suspicions were confirmed when we arrived,” Finn said, adding that Johnson came out and met the officers in a parking lot, before they even had a chance to knock on her door.
“It appeared that she knew and we were just confirming for her.”
Later, the dead man's wife thanked supporters for their thoughts and prayers.
Her final tweet was timed at 10.30pm, when she wrote: “My boys are finally asleep. I feel like a block of cement fell on me.” - AFP