The Johnsons each suffered broken bones, but they are both cheerful and even showing pictures of the accident, said Byron Amundsen, coordinator of mission services for the Department of World Mission. The accident shut down traffic in both directions along a five-mile stretch of the highway for nearly four hours, according to local news reports. Nine people were injured. "Looking at the pictures, it's amazing anybody survived," Amundsen said.

The Johnsons spent their entire 26-year service as Covenant missionaries in Colombia, beginning in 1976. They retired in 2002 and have been living in Wilmington, Illinois, according to the Department of World Mission. During their service in Colombia, the Johnsons spent many years in Medellin and Bogota as well as three years in Barranquilla. Prior to their retirement, they started a new congregation in Cartagena that has grown to more than 200 attendees.

Both Johnsons are graduates of North Park College. Richard completed missionary studies at North Park Theological Seminary in 1976.

The cause of the accident still was being investigated, according to the Chicago Tribune, but it is believed the crash occurred after a southbound tractor-trailer truck failed to brake in time for slowed traffic, setting off a chain of events that led to another truck veering into the northbound lanes, in which several vehicles, including the Johnsons' vehicle were traveling.