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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Silently, Spokane Woman Fights Life-And-Death Battle Couple Were Burned In Freak Explosion In Nashville 6 Weeks Ago

On Monday, Don Wilson stood over his wife’s hospital bed for the first time and looked into her eyes.

With burns covering more than 60 percent of her body, Irma Wilson watched, unable to speak as her husband of almost 50 years cried.

“My mom has not said a word since the day they brought her into the hospital,” the couple’s son, Randy Wilson, said Thursday. His father “made sure that she knew he loved her. He said a prayer over her.”

It’s been six weeks since the vacationing Spokane couple were burned in a freak explosion on a downtown Nashville, Tenn., street.

Don Wilson’s burns, which cover his hands and 30 percent of his body, are healing. The 64-year-old will be released from Vanderbilt University Medical Center today.

But he won’t be going home. “You couldn’t pry him away,” Randy Wilson said.

Irma Wilson, also 64, remains in critical condition, battling the burns as well as pneumonia.

“It’s too early to say if we’ve turned the corner or not,” Randy Wilson said. “When I left, she was responding well. She is just extremely weak and medicated.

“We’re praying right now that these last few days, which have been good ones, continue.”

The Wilsons had just begun a 14-day tour of the Southeast on Oct. 10 when, while walking on a downtown Nashville street about 2:30 p.m., an underground transformer exploded beneath them.

Witnesses said the explosion occurred when a switch was flipped to turn on the electricity in the NASCAR Restaurant, which was under construction.

Flames shooting two stories high burned the Wilsons as well as an electrician and a painter.

The painter, 31-year-old Michael Hickman, died the next day.

Since the accident, Randy Wilson and his sister, Sherry Carter, have struggled to make regular visits to Tennessee while keeping their own lives in order.

“It’s just very difficult all the way around,” said Randy Wilson, who is running his dad’s business, the Don Wilson Insurance Agency on West Garland. “There are people who have come to our family’s side. If it weren’t for that, it would have been much more difficult.”

In Spokane, friends and family members have donated money to allow the brother and sister to fly to Nashville several times.

In Tennessee, area church members drop by the family’s hotel room, their arms filled with meals.

Tape players in the intensive care unit ring with Irma Wilson’s favorite bell choir music and ministers pray over her daily.

One morning, while Randy Wilson and his father sat talking, a young burn victim dropped by to offer hope.

“It is phenomenal,” the son said.

Randy Wilson believes that outpouring of support and prayer will guide his mother through the painful rehabilitation that lies ahead.

His parents may not return to Spokane for up to a year if they stay in Tennessee for rehabilitation. Randy Wilson hopes the family can find a way to spend Christmas together in Nashville.

“If things hold out, in a month or so my mom should be able to enjoy her grandchildren a little bit,” he said. “We just have to hope and pray.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: HOW TO HELP The Don and Irma Wilson Burn Victim Fund has been established on behalf of the family at the Five Mile branch of Washington Trust Bank.

This sidebar appeared with the story: HOW TO HELP The Don and Irma Wilson Burn Victim Fund has been established on behalf of the family at the Five Mile branch of Washington Trust Bank.