POCATELLO — It was 4:30 a.m. when Karter Robison drove north on Interstate 15 just south of Fort Hall, headed to work in Lewisville for a 6 a.m. shift.

Long days and short nights had left the welder tired as he headed to work to the small city in Jefferson County located between Rigby and Roberts just south of Menan. As he drove, he fell asleep just as he approached a section of highway under construction. He doesn’t have a vivid memory of what happened — only what emergency responders told him.

“They told me I hit a pile of asphalt and flew into the air and landed on a bunch of ‘I’ beams,” he said. “There was a sharp right and the construction was straight ahead and I drove straight into the construction.”

That was the morning of Nov. 5. Robison suffered fractures to his L2 and L4 vertebrae and tailbone, resulting in a spinal cord injury that left him with lower leg paralysis. He also had a broken sternum and broken ribs and spent 35 days in the hospital.

He said “fracture” is the medical term for what happened to his vertebrae, but it was described to him a bit differently.

“They just told me my L2 and L4 were obliterated,” Robison said.

Robison, 20, and his girlfriend, Paisley Peterson, 19, have been together nearly five years. They moved in together about six months before the accident. Peterson attends Idaho State University, and Robison’s work as a welder — which included significant overtime — had made life affordable for the couple.

“We are living off of Paisley’s college savings right now,” Robison said.

“This is definitely not what we expected but we are making the best of the situation right now,” Peterson said.

Robison had insurance, but his 35-day hospital stay totaled more than $1 million, and he still isn’t sure how much his insurance will cover. Additional costs include a custom wheelchair, an electric attachment that will give him greater mobility, day-to-day medical supplies and weekly trips to Salt Lake City for physical therapy.

Realizing they needed help, the couple launched a GoFundMe three months ago with a goal of $8,000 — enough to cover the wheelchair, the attachment and some other costs. Fifty-six donors have responded, contributing $6,782.

“We have gotten enough for the wheelchair and the attachments,” Robison said.

The wheelchair is compatible with an attachment featuring a larger front wheel and an electric motor that effectively elevates the two front wheels and converts it into an electric tricycle. The attachment allows Robison to navigate difficult terrain and reduces strain on his arms.

“My arms are basically my legs now but I don’t want to destroy my arms getting around,” he said. “This saves a lot of wear and tear, especially on my shoulders.”

The wheelchair also allows him to traverse grassy and gravelly terrain, making navigation of the area’s varied topography easier. Robison said he is thinking long-term.

“It’s not an ideal situation but I can either be sad about it or I can be happy and try to have a good life,” he said. “I am just trying to make the best of it and keep going.”

The greater burden on the couple is the ongoing daily and weekly costs. Robison requires medical equipment for everyday tasks that his injuries have made difficult, and the couple makes weekly trips to Salt Lake City for specialized physical therapy.

“There isn’t the kind of specialized physical therapy he needs in Pocatello,” Peterson said. “The closest one that can do what he needs is in Salt Lake City.”

Those trips are part of the reason costs remain uncertain.

“Honestly, every week it changes,” Robison said. “Hotel costs change, gas prices are going up. We don’t know how much this is going to cost each month as we continue this.”

Although the GoFundMe goal was $8,000, the couple’s actual needs are far greater. That figure didn’t account for ongoing expenses or the depletion of Peterson’s college savings.

Those wishing to help can find the GoFundMe at gofund.me/35abab24c.