WATCH ABOVE: A Utah woman is dead and her 18-month-old daughter is recovering in hospital after a fisherman saw a car floating in the Spanish Fork River Saturday afternoon. Jackson Proskow reports.
SPANISH FORK, Utah – Police say a baby who spent some 14 hours upside down in a car seat in freezing temperatures after her mother crashed their car into a Utah river is improving and expected to live.
READ MORE: Baby found alive in car 14 hours after crash in Utah river
Spanish Fork police Lt. Matt Johnson said Monday that the family has told him 18-month-old Lily Groesbeck is doing better. She was discovered midday Saturday by a fisherman after police believe her mother struck a cement barrier on a bridge and careened into the river.
Her mother, 25-year-old Jennifer Groesbeck, was found dead in the car.
A gofundme.com page set up for the family has so far exceeded its goal of $8,000. The page says the money will help cover funeral expenses for the mother and for the girl’s medical care, who is “fighting for her life” in a Salt Lake City hospital.
“The family needs help with funeral expenses for Jenny and the remaining funds will go towards Lily’s ongoing medical care. We would like to thank the first responders, medical personnel, policemen and firefighters who risked their own lives to save this sweet baby.”
Johnson said police don’t know what caused the accident late Friday night. He says there were no skid marks or signs of mechanical failures in the car. No one saw the wreck.
Family members told police that Groesbeck was en route to her Springville home near Provo when the crash occurred. Family spokeswoman Jill Sanderson did not immediately answer phone calls for comment Sunday.
Three police officers and four firefighters who entered the river were released after treatment for hypothermia at a hospital.
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