Three siblings were released from the hospital after a multi-vehicle crash on Route 55 in Gloucester County earlier this month, a family member said Monday.
Their mother, meanwhile, remains hospitalized in an intensive care unit, according to Daryan Fennal, a cousin to the children.
According to a post on a GoFundMe set up by Fennal, the 36-year-old mother of five suffered a brain injury as a result of the crash.
“My aunt is still in ICU at this point and we are just hoping she is getting 1% better each day,” Fennal posted over the weekend in a public update on a GoFundMe site to raise money for the family.
“She has made some progress but we got news that allows us to know this will be a lengthy process. We were told not to expect a quick turnaround,” she wrote.
The three children who were hospitalized after the March 9 crash range in age from 2 to 13, she said.
“The children came home last week. We have a big family and we are all stepping up to help the best we can,” Fennal said.
Fennal said family members have been helping to care for all five of the children at home while their father is at the hospital at his wife’s bedside.
“We are just doing the best we can,” she said, noting the youngest child keeps asking to see his mother.
“When their dad isn’t at the hospital, he is home,” Fennal said. “We are all stepping in to help out the family best we can. It’s a lot for these kids, physically and mentally. The smallest one at age two is attached to his mom’s hip and he’s without his mom right now. He keeps asking for her. It’s hard.”
A GoFundMe for the family that Fennal started had raised more than $86,000 as of Tuesday.
“The outpouring of love and support for this family has been incredible and we are deeply grateful for the donations,” Fennal said.
The crash happened 10 days ago on the side of Route 55 in Elk Township.
Fennal said her aunt was driving her van to take the children to the park when the vehicle got a flat tire and she pulled to the side of Route 55. Her husband was on the way to change the flat tire.
