Turtle crashes through South Carolina driver's windshield on the highway

CONWAY, SC -- A South Carolina man escaped uninjured after a turtle came flying through his windshield, shattering it.

The frightening scene unfolded April 30 as John Gardner drove down Highway 501 in Conway, South Carolina. The rear tire on a truck near him hit a turtle, sending it into the air and through Gardner's windshield.

"I still don't understand the exact angle of that tire, for it to just fling into my windshield," Gardner told WBTW-TV.

"I was definitely surprised because I couldn't even tell what it was at first. It was like a big, black dot coming at me, and I couldn't move at all," he added.

Though Gardner escaped unharmed, the turtle did not survive the incident. Gardner said the driver of the truck that hit the turtle stopped to make sure everything was okay.