A paraglider hit power lines and burst into flames during a routine evening flight with his friend. But what happened next was nothing short of a miracle.
How many times have we faced those life-or-death moments when everything seemed hopeless?
Maybe it was a health battle doctors couldn’t fix, or a car accident that should have been fatal.
Looking back, we know it wasn’t our own strength that saved us — it was God’s mercy stepping in when we needed it most.
For paraglider Don St. Clair, that truth came in the most dramatic way possible.
A Normal Evening Takes a Deadly Turn
Steve Hertz and Don St. Clair got ready for their usual evening of powered paragliding. They had done this hundreds of times before. “We didn’t anticipate any issues,” Steve said. “It looked like a very normal evening for flying, and we were just looking forward to getting in the air.”
The weather was perfect. It was almost 80 degrees with light winds and clear blue skies.
Don tried to take off first but couldn’t get his wing inflated right. He had to stop and start over.
Steve took off instead with his GoPro camera recording everything.
Steve flew around the field and went to their meeting spot to wait for Don. After ten minutes, Don still wasn’t in the air.
Steve decided to fly back and check on his friend. That’s when he saw Don inflate his wing and finally take off.
Don Hits 140,000 Volt Power Line
Then disaster struck. Don was flying too low and heading straight for trees on one side of the airfield.
“Normally his machine would have enough power to climb out and straighten out, and this particular evening it didn’t,” Steve explained.
Don turned hard to the right and missed the trees. But now the wind was pushing him from behind.
He was picking up speed and flying straight toward 140,000 volt power lines. Steve could only watch in horror.
“As soon as I saw I was gonna hit ’em, the only thought that went through my head is I’m dead,” Don remembered. “When I hit those lines, the whole world turned into a ball of fire. And I was just waiting literally for it all to come to an end ’cause I expected it…any minutes for the lights to go out.”
Steve watched his friend disappear into flames. “I thought he was dead. I literally watched him turn into a ball of fire and I thought, that’s not survivable. It was just the worst feeling I’ve ever had.”
A Miracle Unfolds
But something amazing happened. Don didn’t die. “Instead I had the feeling of falling. And next thing I knew I was on my back on the ground looking up at the sky. I couldn’t believe I was alive to be quite honest. And as I laid there, I said, ‘thank you, God,’ because I knew right away the only way I survived that was divine intervention.”
Steve landed right away and called 911. He ran across the street to where Don had crashed. He was praying his friend was still alive. “I was praying that he was alive. I really thought I watched a human being die.”
When Steve got there, he couldn’t believe what he saw. Don was awake and talking. “He looked up and talked to me and I thought, ‘Wow, this is a miracle,'” Steve said.
Hospital and Healing
Paramedics rushed Don to the University of Michigan Hospital. Steve called Don’s wife Karen with the news.
“Steve’s like, ‘Oh, Don’s gonna be okay but he had a little accident.’ He was very calm, which was very good. I was praying instantly from that point on,” Karen remembered.
Karen drove 30 minutes to the hospital, praying the whole way. When she got there, doctors told her Don had second and third degree burns over 25% of his body.
“Definitely the Holy Spirit was with me ’cause I don’t know how I didn’t panic or didn’t have an anxiety attack,” she said.
Don was happy to see his wife. “When I finally got to see Karen, first of all, I was elated to still be there. But seeing her and assuring her that I was gonna be okay and that I was gonna make it through it, that just strengthened our bond even greater.”
Power of Prayer
Karen started texting people right away, asking them to pray for Don’s healing.
Two days later, something incredible happened. Don was supposed to have skin graft surgery, but his doctor found something amazing.
“It looked like the skin was starting to heal itself. They went ahead and covered his burnt skin with pig skin to allow it to heal on his own,” Karen said.
Don wasn’t surprised. “In my heart, that wasn’t a surprise. Literally hundreds of people sending out prayers to me. And I know that that was part of my healing process.”
Don said those prayers helped him through the painful weeks that followed. “I actually had waves of pain that would course through my arms, my legs, and as I, I closed my eyes and just concentrated on what was going on. And the image that came to me was that those waves were hands that were actually caressing those wounds. It was those prayers that were coursing through me, and that set me at ease.”
Against All Odds
Just two weeks after the accident, Don went home. His doctor was amazed. “The surgeon had looked me over and he said, ‘you’re healing quickly.’ I knew it was the prayers doing a good job, but I healed quicker than they expected.”
Don was back to doing his ranch chores soon after. Six months later, he had made a complete recovery. When you look at what happened, it’s clear this was a miracle. The power lines Don hit carried 140,000 volts of electricity.
“When I hit those lines, the explosion knocked the breath outta me. Had I inhaled that super heated air, it would’ve seared my lungs. The electricity surrounded me, it should have gone through me. The gas didn’t ignite or explode. The battery didn’t explode. 50 foot fall should be fatal. I came down motor side first. Had it come down face first, that 85 pound engine would’ve crushed me. The list of things of why I know I’m blessed and why there was divine intervention is a long list because there’s no way I should have survived that.”
A Life Forever Changed
This experience changed both Don and Karen’s faith. “It definitely strengthened my belief in prayer and realizing how specific you can pray,” Karen said.
Don has a message for anyone going through tough times: “Put your troubles into Jesus’ hands. You’ll get through this life so much better. You’ll have a comfort in your soul that is unmatched by anything else.”
WATCH: Paraglider Shares Powerful Testimony After Fiery Near-Death Crash
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