A missing 41-year-old woman was found alive Tuesday after surviving for six days in her crashed car in Newton County, Ind.
Brieonna Cassell was reported missing six days ago after leaving her mother’s home to visit a friend, according to a release by the Newton County Sheriff’s Office.
“A passerby located a vehicle off the roadway, out of view from passing traffic,” the police added in the release, saying that the passerby, Johnny Martinez, was in the area operating equipment for Deyoung Drainage.
After locating the vehicle, Martinez contacted his supervisor, Jeremy Vanderwall, who also happens to be an assistant chief at a local fire department in the nearby town of Morocco.
“Martinez and Vanderwall checked the vehicle and found Cassell to be the sole occupant. She was conscious and speaking. Despite her injuries, Cassell had survived 6 days waiting to be rescued. She was flown to a Chicago Hospital,” the release added.
“She was very conscious, very alert, very aware of how severe her injuries were,” Vanderwall told ABC News. “She said, ‘I didn’t think anybody was gonna find me. I thought I was gonna die in this ditch.’”
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Cassell had been trapped in her car since March 6, when she fell asleep at the wheel and veered off the road into a ditch under a bridge, according to her father, Delmar Caldwell.
Cassell’s cellphone was dead and under the passenger seat, according to Caldwell. He also said that his daughter could hear cars going by and she screamed for help, but no one could see or hear her.
“She was stuck in the car and could not get out. But she was able to reach the water from the car,” Caldwell said. “The only way she was able to survive was using her hoodie and dipping it into the water in a ditch and sucking the water, or bringing the the water into her mouth from the ditch.”
After Cassell had been taken to the hospital, her mother provided an update to the Newton County Sheriff’s Office.
“Bri is listed in stable condition. She is scheduled for surgery today as there is some concern with the healing of her legs. Her outlook for recovery is good but it will be a long road,” she shared.
Newton County Sheriff Shannon Cothran called Cassell’s survival “an incredible testament to her will to live.”
“We are grateful for all the well-wishes sent her way,” Cothran wrote. “But behind the scenes, there is another story — one of true community and heroism.”
Cothran said that the sheriff’s office owes “immense gratitude to Johnny Martinez, who spotted the car in the ditch.”
“In my book, Mr. Martinez is a hero, and we can never thank him enough for his keen eye and quick action,” Cothran added.
“Please take a moment to appreciate these incredible volunteers. They selflessly give their time and energy to help others, and we are so fortunate to have them,” Cothran said of the volunteer firefighters who worked together to help Cassell.
