Those motherly instincts were on full alert after this North Carolina mother found her daughter staying in one place for too long on the phone tracking app. When she followed the directions, it took all the courage she had to face what was coming.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on July 8, 2019. It has since been updated.
Catrina Cramer Alexander knew in her heart that something was wrong when her daughter Macy Smith missed her curfew and did not respond to texts or calls from her family.
Smith had been driving on Pilot Knob Park Road in Surry County, near U.S. 52, on the afternoon of June 7. She had stepped out to go visit a friend on a rainy day when tragedy struck, reports Daily Mail.
Anxious and worried about her daughter, Alexander took to the Find My Friends app to locate her daughter. “The lack of response was out of character for her,” Alexander told WFMY.
Confused and fear mounting, Alexander managed to find her daughter's phone location but was unable to figure out why it showed Smith being in the same place for "far too long." Choosing to follow her gut instincts, she set out to look for her daughter and what she found had her heart pounding. “I can’t explain watching the GPS on my phone with my dot for my phone getting close to hers and then suddenly seeing the tire tracks,” she recalled to Huffington Post.
It turned out that Smith's car had hydroplaned on the wet roads, fallen 25 feet down an embankment on Pilot Mountain and flipped three times. She had been pinned under her car for seven hours before she heard the voice of her family members.
"I was lying in a ditch 20 yards off the road for the 7th hour with my arm pinned under my car. I will never forget the sound of my family calling out my name when they found me around 10:30 pm," Smith wrote in an emotional Facebook post. "I hydroplaned at 4:00 pm and ran in between 2 trees down an embankment, flipped my car 3 times, and landed in my back seat with my arm pinned in between the car and the ground."
According to KCTV5, the 17-year-old mentioned that she tried to remain calm during her petrifying ordeal. Turning to prayer, Smith recalled, "I searched for my phone to call for help but the only thing in sight was my bible. I held on to my bible and prayed harder than I had ever prayed before."
Once she was found, paramedics rushed her to the hospital where she was diagnosed with a fractured neck for which she underwent surgery to relieve the pressure and swelling. She also suffered severe nerve damage in her left arm - the one that had been pinned under her car.
According to her Facebook post, her white sedan was a complete wreck with the front windshield smashed, both sides of the car damaged, and the backside smashed up and containing loose pieces sitting underneath.
She posted photos of herself lying in the hospital bed with a neck brace on. Her mother calls it a "miracle" and claimed that they are grateful for "every minute and every milestone."
“I’m so thankful for the phone calls, flowers, text messages, friends and family who surrounded me as I was found last night, and all of the visitors I have had today," Smith wrote.
"I do not deserve to be here right now, but God has bigger plans for me," Smith wrote. "I ask that everyone continues to pray for me as I will have upcoming surgeries, therapy, and struggles to face within the next couple of weeks. I will keep everyone updated as best as I can but for now PLEASE pray for me and my family."
Her mother too shared her feelings about the incident, according to the Epoch Times. “As parents, brothers, sisters, we can’t really even articulate the feelings of gratefulness, of sheer awe, of overwhelming guilt, followed by extreme joy and, all the while, perspective…. It’s a roller coaster of emotions that just repeats itself that we can’t even explain. That night…we won’t ever forget, it’s burned into our memories,” she said.
“But the love on that ridge, the love in that ravine, the love from first responders, medical personnel and the love in your texts, calls, and visits will give our brave girl and our family the strength she/we need to overcome any obstacles in this earthly life. Macy’s entire family was with her during her rescue. I have no doubt that Macy’s testimony will help others in profound and meaningful ways. She is stronger because of you, WE are stronger because of HER.”
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