COLUMBUS, Ohio – Former senator and astronaut John Glenn and his wife were recovering at a hospital Saturday after a car accident a day earlier, Glenn's former press secretary said.
Glenn, 85, and his wife, Annie, 86, were in fair condition Saturday afternoon at Grant Medical Center, nursing supervisor Louis Tejada said. They were expected to be released Sunday after a few final tests, said Dale Butland, a friend of the couple who formerly worked for Glenn.
Glenn and his wife were returning home from a fundraiser at a suburban Columbus country club late Friday when he tried to make a left turn onto a highway ramp, Butland said.
"He saw a lot of cars in the distance, but did not see this car that was right up on him," Butland said.
The oncoming car hit the front end of Glenn's car. The driver, Amy Myers of suburban New Albany, was not injured and told The Columbus Dispatch that Glenn was "very sincerely sorry."
Police cited Glenn for failure to yield, Butland said.
Butland said Glenn was sore, especially in the chest where he was hit when his car's air bag deployed. He and his wife suffered bumps and bruises.
"They are very, very grateful that nobody was hurt more seriously, including the other party involved in the accident," Butland said.
Glenn, who served in the Senate from 1974 to 1998, first made headlines in 1962, when he piloted the first manned orbital mission of the United States. He went back into space in 1998, at the age of 77.
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