A local woman has won a huge settlement from Hampton Roads Transit after a crash that happened in the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel more than five years ago. But, she says the $3 million settlement will never get her life back.
Fatima Laila Fortmuller was stuck in typical tunnel traffic the day of the accident in February, 2002.

“I remember that boom. Then, after that, I don't remember much,” said Fortmuller.

An HRT bus slammed into the back of her Dodge Neon, sending her car into an SUV. She suffered a closed brain injury.

“What happens is the brain is twisted in the skull,” Fortmuller explained.

In an instant, her life as a merchant seaman was over.

Now, headaches attack her constantly. She's lost her sense of smell. A full night's sleep is impossible, and her short-term memory fails. She also says that her personality has changed.

“I'm always crying, and the reason is just memories,” said Fortmuller.

Fortmuller says she also lost all but one of her friends after the accident, because her depression and ill health became too much for them to bear.