Click to watch raw video| Raw interview: "I damn near died!"| KHOU-TV anchor Len Cannon's report

For William Huther, driving in Houston is something he’s never looked forward to doing. “I told my boss I dislike driving in Houston. I had been putting it off all week. Finally, I had to come down, it’s Friday afternoon, I had to come down.”

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William Huther was downtown when the crane fell on his pickup truck.

Huther was on his way to pick up court papers and was stopped at a traffic light when something fell on his truck. “I saw a cable come in front of my truck. I was glancing at the truck in front of me. Then I saw a heavy steal ball come down and miss my truck. I’m sitting there thinking, ‘Damn, am I lucky’”.

Lucky indeed.

But this Stafford resident had no idea just how lucky he was. “Then the cable collapsed...people started shouting and I kicked the door open to get out of it.”

Huther said he got out just after a construction crane fell on his pickup truck. “I just stumbled around. It wasn’t until police arrived on the scene that I thought about it. I damn near died. If it would have been one foot further I wouldn’t be talking to you. I’m glad to be alive.”

The accident occurred just before noon Friday at Dallas and San Jacinto.

The crane belongs to Bell Bottom Foundation.

It’s a subcontractor that Harvey Builders hired.

David Harvey with Harvey Builders says his company has been doing business with Bell Bottom Foundation for years.

He says that company and the crane operator have a good records and that the incident was just a freak accident. “The drilling rig, which is a crane mounted rig, hit a soft spot and it got unbalanced and tipped over."

The crane operator was inside the unit. He was not hurt.

Harvey suspects the recent rain may have softened the ground.

He says his company is launching an investigation.

San Jacinto was blocked off for nearly one hour while crews cleared off the scene.

The man in the middle of the accident, William Huther, suffered scratches on his hand and arm and a bump on the head.

While he is grateful to be alive, he does regret what he lost in the accident. “I love that truck!” he said.