I am also glad your friend is OK. Nice job in being there for him and hope he recovers fully.
That's scary because even if he or someone would have checked the front wheel, how likely is it that there would have been something obvious indicating a failure was imminent? Maybe yes but I doubt it. This reminds me of someone I met after his carbon fork failed on his basically new bike. His face was a mess but at least he was walking. I guess I am surprised these things happen considering how carefully designed, or at least should be, critical components are.