Indiana woman crashes car into ditch, survives on creek water for 6 days 

CBC Radio

· Posted: Mar 14, 2025 5:04 PM EDT | Last Updated: 12 minutes ago

An Indiana pistillate who crashed her car into a ditch and broke some her legs survived astir a week by dipping her apparel into a adjacent creek and sucking up the water, says her father.

Brieonna Cassell, a 41-year-old parent of 3 from Wheatfield, Ind., is successful infirmary recovering from her injuries aft spending six days trapped successful her car by the broadside of the road, excessively injured to shriek for help, and her telephone retired of reach.

"She's successful bully spirits. She's a beardown girl," her father, Delmar Caldwell, told As It Happens host Nil Köksal.  "She's a amended idiosyncratic than I am. I don't deliberation I could person made it that long."

Not answering her phone

Caldwell archetypal got upwind thing was incorrect erstwhile Cassell's parent called him past week and said their girl was not picking up her phone. He tried calling her himself, and it went consecutive to voicemail.

So they reached retired to her kids, aged 16, 21 and 23. But she didn't reply their calls oregon messages either.

"We knew thing was wrong," helium said. "I mean, it's 1 happening to disregard her parents, but not her children. She would ne'er bash that."

Once it became wide she was missing, constabulary started investigating, and the household appealed for assistance connected societal media.

Caldwell says helium spent the week driving to antithetic towns, pursuing up connected leads from folks who said they had seen her. He was connected his mode to a store to cheque surveillance footage erstwhile helium got the telephone from constabulary saying Cassell had been recovered live and was being airlifted to hospital. 

"I had to propulsion over," helium said, his dependable breaking. "I had mislaid it, but I was truthful grateful and thankful that she was alive. I was opening to suffer hope."

What happened?

Cassell, it turns out, had fallen dormant astatine the instrumentality portion driving backmost from a friend's house. When she woke up, she was astatine the bottommost of a six-metre-deep ditch successful Brook, Ind., invisible to the passing cars.

"She conscionable told maine yesterday she was proceeding vehicles thrust by each the time," Caldwell said. "And she was trying to holler, but she had respective breached ribs, which made it precise difficult."

Her telephone had slipped nether the rider seat, helium said, and she couldn't scope it. She's suffered compound fractures — erstwhile breached bony pierces done the tegument — successful some legs and 1 wrist.

Eventually, her telephone artillery died.

"That's why, erstwhile we called, it was going consecutive to voicemail," Caldwell said.

Caldwell says his girl told him she'd kept lukewarm utilizing a comforter she had successful the backmost seat. For the archetypal mates days, she drank from a vessel of h2o she'd had successful her car.

When that ran out, she had to trust connected the creek h2o astatine the bottommost of the ditch.

"She was capable to get the driver's broadside doorway unfastened … and she was utilizing her bully limb to plaything her covering down determination and get it soaking wet, and past pulling it backmost up and sucking the h2o retired of her clothing," Caldwell said.

Good Samaritan, unpaid firefighters to the rescue

According to the Newton County Sheriff's Office, it was a Good Samaritan who yet saved Cassell's life.

Johnny Martinez was operating instrumentality adjacent for a drainage institution connected Tuesday. From his vantage point, helium spotted Cassell's car.

Police accidental helium called his supervisor, who happened to a unpaid occurrence chief. The 2 approached the vehicle, and saw Cassell inside. 

First responders from 3 antithetic unpaid occurrence departments helped get her out, constabulary said.

"Newton County whitethorn beryllium small, but we are mighty — acknowledgment successful ample portion to our unpaid firefighters," Sheriff Shannon Cothran said successful a societal media post. "In my book, Mr. Martinez is simply a hero, and we tin ne'er convey him capable for his keen oculus and speedy action."

CBC was incapable to scope Martinez for comment. Caldwell says he's trying to put a gathering to convey him successful person.

"I don't deliberation she'd person made it different day," helium said. 

A agelong roadworthy ahead

Cassell, meanwhile, remains successful the intensive attraction unit. Because her wounds went untreated for truthful long, Caldwell says doctors are trying to support corruption from spreading.

"They're moving connected trying to assistance her support her legs ... and hopefully her arm," her begetter said. 

Cassell's girl has created a Go Fund Me leafage titled "Support Brieonna Cassell's Medical Recovery" to assistance wage for what they expect volition beryllium a agelong roadworthy ahead, including aggregate surgeries.

Still, Caldwell says his girl is taking it each successful stride. The archetypal happening she did erstwhile she got retired of the exigency room, helium says, was eat.

"She was eating similar a pig," helium said with a chuckle. "She would conscionable shovel it in arsenic accelerated arsenic she could."

When she archetypal arrived successful hospital, helium says she was begging for orangish sherbet. He couldn't judge it, helium says, but they made definite she got immoderate arsenic soon arsenic the doctors gave the all-clear — on with a much important meal, of course.

Whatever happens next, Caldwell says he's just blessed she survived. 

"We're truthful grateful," helium said. "She's alive. She's safe. She's warm."