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SALT LAKE CITY — Family members reported 18-month-old Lily Groesbeck was a happy baby Monday, just days after she survived 14 hours inside the watery wreckage of a car crash that took her mother’s life.
An update on the family's GoFundMe web page said Lily was treating family members to laughs, singing "Wheels on the Bus" with her grandpa and watching Dora, all while making an “astounding” medical recovery at Primary Children’s Hospital.
Doctors reported Lily was stable Monday afternoon, Spanish Fork Police Lt. Matt Johnson told KSL News.
The girl was rescued from the Spanish Fork River Saturday by police officers and firefighters who reported finding her upside down, strapped in a car seat in the vehicle. Lynn Jennifer “Jenny” Groesbeck, 25, died in the wreck after her vehicle veered into the river late Friday night, but her baby girl was still alive nearly 14 hours later when a fisherman spotted the vehicle in the river and called police.
More than $34,000 in donations poured into the family's GoFundMe account within about 24 hours after it was set up Sunday, easily exceeding the family's goal of $8,000. The money, raised by more than 900 donors, will go toward continuing medical care for Lily and funeral costs for her mother.
“The only people who will have access to these funds will be Jill Sanderson (Groesbeck’s sister) and Lily’s legal guardian, whoever that is determined to be,” reads the fundraiser description.
The story quickly spread across the country and was recounted in multiple publications and national TV shows.
Lily’s father was working out of state at the time of the wreck and traveled back to Utah to see his daughter when he received news of the wreck, Johnson said. The lieutenant was unsure whether the man also lives outside of Utah, but said he was not married to Groesbeck.
When the vehicle crashed into the river, the back of the car was propped up slightly higher than the front of the car and water running through the vehicle “was merely inches" from Lily's head when she was rescued by Spanish Fork police officers and firefighters, Johnson said.
Four police officers at the scene all said they heard an unmistakable voice coming from the car, saying “Help me.” They pushed the upside down car onto its side and discovered Groesbeck deceased inside and Lily unconscious.
Officer Tyler Beddoes said the voice "was a positive boost for every one of us because I think it pushed us to go harder a little longer."
The baby’s eyes fluttered open briefly, one officer recalled, giving the group hope they would be able to save her. They rushed her into an ambulance and performed CPR while she was transported to the hospital in critical condition.
Three of the officers and four firefighters who were in the river were later hospitalized Saturday for hypothermia. Johnson said they were “showing signs of delusion and being disoriented” but responded well to treatment and were released that afternoon.
Police said they may never know for certain what caused the crash, though it remains under investigation. There wasn't initially any evidence of drugs or alcohol use, but it is possible drowsy or distracted driving could have contributed to the wreck, Johnson said.
Groesbeck was driving to her home to Springville after visiting her parents in Salem when the accident happened. She likely crashed about 10:30 p.m. Friday, police said, but the wreck went unreported until about 12:30 p.m. Saturday because her car was difficult to see from the road.
Contributing: Sam Penrod, Nicole Vowell
Email: blockhart@deseretnews.com
