A baby was found alive but in critical condition inside a wrecked car in Utah Saturday, 13 hours after the car the child was in plunged into a river, police said. The child's mother was found dead in the car when an fisherman discovered the crashed vehicle at around 12:20 p.m. Saturday afternoon.
Police believe the car hit a cement barrier on a bridge at around 10:30 p.m. Friday night and ended up in the Spanish Fork River in Spanish Fork, a city of around 37,000 people south of Provo.
The 4-door Dodge was upside down and resting on its roof and the 18-month-old girl was found locked in a car seat in the rear passenger seat, police said. The baby’s 25-year-old mother was dead in the driver’s seat when first responders arrived, Spanish Fork Police said in a statement.
The baby was flown by helicopter to a hospital in Salt Lake City in critical condition, authorities said. Police did not release any names in the incident, citing pending notification of family members.
Relatives told police that the woman was driving home to Springville from a family member’s home in Salem when the crash occurred, cops said.