Driver Cheats Death After Steel Pipe Crashes Through Windshield On Highway 99

BAKERSFIELD (CBS) — A Southland man was feeling more than lucky on Wednesday after what authorities said should have been a fatal accident.

Marcus Kasparzyk, 41, was driving down Highway 99 near Bakersfield when a four-foot-long steel pipe broke loose from a pick-up truck in front of him and came flying toward his car.

The pipe hit the steering wheel, but missed hitting Kasparzyk in the face by a fraction of an inch.

California Highway Patrol officials said the pipe would have likely impaled Kasparzyk if the steering wheel had not obstructed its path.

Kasparzyk — who said he only remembers seeing a flash of steel before drifting off the side of the road — suffered only minor injuries in the incident.

"You have much greater chances of getting hit by lightning or winning the lottery than to find a four-foot steel pole in your windshield," Kasparzyk said.

Authorities still aren't sure how the pipe dislodged from the truck in front of him.