KANSAS CITY, MO -
A woman driving through rural Cass County, Missouri was struck by a stray bullet from a high-powered deer rifle on Tuesday. The bullet is believed to have traveled a mile or more before it struck Lisa Long in the cheek. It exited her mouth and landed on the floorboard of her car.
"I literally didn't know what hit me," Long said. "Went through my cheek and out the front of my mouth."
What's more, Long's window was down six inches or so, and the bullet zipped through at just the right angle before connecting with Long's face. She said her head jerked back. That's when blood started pouring down her cheek.
"It's hamburger," she said. "One of my teeth is split down the center and up."
Had the bullet been six inches higher, Long would have lost her life, rather than her tooth.
"I got a smile on my face all the time," she said. "I'm not really laughing at it. I'm just so thrilled to be here."
After a doctor visit that left her with six stitches, Long and her husband searched her car, trying to figure out what hit her. That's when they found the bullet from a thirty-ought six rifle on the floorboard.
"It was, for going through her face, it was enormous," said Bryan Vest, husband.
Long said she won't remove the scar.
"Heck, this is a bullet, man!" she exclaimed. "I'm a tough woman. I'm proud of this."
So proud in fact, for a belated Halloween party Long wore her scar with a prom dress. Half was good. Half was gore.
"I figured there was no amount of makeup that was going to cover it up," she said. "A mask would have been uncomfortable, so I had to use it."
Long said she's using her accident as a lesson for life. With two autistic children, Long said she wants to help people with disabilities even more. As for the bullet that nearly took her life, Long said as soon as police are finished with it, she wants it back.
"Souvenir," she said. "Scar's not enough."
But certainly not scarred for life?
"I literally didn't know what hit me," Long said. "Went through my cheek and out the front of my mouth."
What's more, Long's window was down six inches or so, and the bullet zipped through at just the right angle before connecting with Long's face. She said her head jerked back. That's when blood started pouring down her cheek.
"It's hamburger," she said. "One of my teeth is split down the center and up."
Had the bullet been six inches higher, Long would have lost her life, rather than her tooth.
"I got a smile on my face all the time," she said. "I'm not really laughing at it. I'm just so thrilled to be here."
After a doctor visit that left her with six stitches, Long and her husband searched her car, trying to figure out what hit her. That's when they found the bullet from a thirty-ought six rifle on the floorboard.
"It was, for going through her face, it was enormous," said Bryan Vest, husband.
Long said she won't remove the scar.
"Heck, this is a bullet, man!" she exclaimed. "I'm a tough woman. I'm proud of this."
So proud in fact, for a belated Halloween party Long wore her scar with a prom dress. Half was good. Half was gore.
"I figured there was no amount of makeup that was going to cover it up," she said. "A mask would have been uncomfortable, so I had to use it."
Long said she's using her accident as a lesson for life. With two autistic children, Long said she wants to help people with disabilities even more. As for the bullet that nearly took her life, Long said as soon as police are finished with it, she wants it back.
"Souvenir," she said. "Scar's not enough."
But certainly not scarred for life?
