Pregnant Driver, Fetus Survive Flip of Car into Ditch
A pregnant woman whose car flipped, hurling her into a freeway drainage ditch, suffered a fractured pelvis, broken ribs and arm and major head injuries, but she and her fetus survived, highway patrol and hospital officials said Friday.
Jenny Maribel Franco, 35, of Santa Ana was driving home from work about 2:30 a.m. when she apparently fell asleep at the wheel, CHP Officer Rick Pena said.
Her car ran into the right shoulder of the northbound San Diego Freeway north of Westminster Avenue, flipped, slid down an embankment and landed in a concrete drainage ditch, Pena said.
Despite her injuries, she crawled out of her car and managed to wave at oncoming traffic for rescue.
“With all those injuries, that’s pretty incredible,” CHP Officer Denise Quesada said.
A tow truck driver saw Franco waving at 6:30 a.m. and stopped to help, Quesada said.
The Westminster Fire Department then airlifted her to Long Beach Memorial Hospital, where she was admitted in critical condition. By Friday afternoon Franco’s condition was upgraded to fair and doctors believed she and her 4-month-old fetus would survive, said Lori Brandt, a hospital spokesperson.
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