A missing single mother of four was found in her wrecked car at the bottom of an embankment off a Denver-area highway — but doctors had to amputate both her feet to help save her life, her family said Monday.
Kristin Hopkins was stranded and trapped in her car for almost a week with no food or water, KUSA-TV reported. A passerby who happened to stop on the roadway to admire the scenery spotted her car at the bottom of the hill, 120 feet from the road and 200 feet into a grove, upside down, KUSA-TV said.
Emergency responders found her alive but severely injured.
“The crash alone would have taken its toll on her,” Colorado State Trooper Dean Enright said, USA Today reported. “It’s surprising that she survived the crash at all, and then to be down there for that amount of days without food or water …”
The family released a statement at the hospital to all those who helped save Ms. Hopkins, including the man who spotted the glint of her car metal in the grove.
“We sincerely appreciate all the thoughts, prayers and kind gestures,” the statement read. “While we’re hopeful of her prognosis, Kristin was seriously injured and with multiple internal and external injuries. … Doctors were not able to save her feet due to the severity of those injuries. Kristin is in critical but stable condition at this time and has a very long road ahead.”
Ms. Hopkins was reported missing on April 29.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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