‘I’m glad to be alive, man’: Paralyzed survivor describes his ordeal in New Orleans

Sitting in a hospital bed after hours of surgery on both of his broken legs, Jeremi Sensky began to piece together the pieces of a life that was shattered on New Year’s Day.

The 51-year-old Pennsylvania father was ringing in the New Year in New Orleans when a gunman ran down Bourbon Street, killing 14 people and wounding dozens more. In the chaos, Sensky – who was paralyzed from the waist down several years ago in a car accident – ​​was knocked out of his wheelchair and broke both his legs.

“I didn’t know if I was going to make it through this and everybody helped me. I’m back together,” Sensky told ABC News’ Whit Johnson. “I’m glad to be alive, man.”

As the white pickup truck began barreling down the street, Sensky said he couldn’t figure out what was causing the commotion. He said he initially thought it was an explosion.

“Someone was shouting behind me and I turned around and heard a loud noise,” he said.

“The next thing I remember I was lying on the ground and my leg was all floppy like it was broken,” he said. “I lifted my leg with my hand. It was like bending the pieces and I didn’t know what was wrong.”

While the fall broke several bones and ultimately required hours of surgery, his position on the ground may have saved his life when the gunman began shooting at bystanders.

“I heard gunshots and I kept thinking, I hope I’m out of the way of the gunshot. I hope I’m low enough to the ground that I wasn’t in the way of the gunshot,” he said.

Still on the ground when the shooting stopped, Sensky said he “screamed as loud as (he) could” for help and struggled to determine the extent of his injuries.

“I was scared because of my leg. I kept screaming for help. Nobody came. I kept scraping around trying to find my phone, it was just pieces of my wheelchair,” he said , as law enforcement took care of the bodies near him.

As officers began to retreat from the scene due to concerns about possible explosive devices in the truck, Sensky said his fears worsened.

“I got even more scared because now I’m lying next to a truck – and can’t move – that might have explosives in it,” he said.

Ultimately, he credited first responders and hospital staff with saving his life, transporting him from Bourbon Street to University Medical Center for hours of surgery.

Even after he woke up from the operation, he said he struggled to remember exactly what happened that night.

“Honestly, like all the time, I really didn’t know what the hell was going on. I just didn’t know. I didn’t know I’d been hit by anything. I thought it was an explosion. I thought something popped up,” he said.

Despite his injuries, Sensky said he feels “lucky” to have survived the attack and to be reunited with his family.

“I’ve been through a lot in my life, man,” he said. “I was paralyzed in a car wreck. It was probably the worst part of my life and I’ve been in a wheelchair ever since. I hate to say it, but I feel lucky right now. I’m alive and the people I was with, is still alive.”

“How optimistic are you at this moment, for the future in this new year?” Johnson asked during their candid conversation at University Medical Center.

“I’m alive, man. I’m alive. Everything’s good,” Sensky said.