One of two Dallas hit-and-run victims released from hospital, search for 18-wheeler continues
One of two college roommates critically injured in a hit and run crash with an 18-wheeler in Dallas went home from the hospital today.
Kaylee Jensen looks physically healthy after the crash, but she faces months of rehab and recovery. Her friend, Cassandra Lizardi, remains hospitalized at Parkland Hospital.
Both families are grateful the two survived the collision but they are still hoping someone will come forward with information about the truck driver who put them in the hospital.
The families of 21 -year-olds, Cassondra Lizardi and Kaylee Jensen are thankful the young women are healing, but they are still hoping someone will come forward with information about the truck driver who put the two friends in the hospital.
“He did not know if these girls were dead or alive, he just kept going,” said Bryant Argon, Cassandra’s brother.
The UT Dallas roommates were on their way to dinner on Jan. 13 when they became victims of a multi-vehicle hit-and-run crash. Just before 7 p.m, the Dallas Sheriff Office says an 18-wheeler made a dangerous lane change on I-35, near the Dallas North Tollway exit.
Crash investigators say Lizardi’s vehicle went under the tractor trailer, spun around and hit another vehicle, then bounced off a retaining wall and slammed into a third vehicle as the truck driver just kept going northbound on I-35.
“This is about what’s right and what’s wrong, somebody being held accountable for what they did,” said Chris Jensen, Kaylee’s father.
The 18-wheeler is described as having an orange cab and a white trailer.
Lizardi’s hips and collar bone were broken and will remain hospitalized several more weeks.
“That’s some nightmare stuff! To be hit and then hit two other cars and the wall and then just be left there? And then the driver to keep going?” Argon said.
Kaylee returned home Tuesday morning, where she is still recovering from a brain hemorrhage, a broken vertebrae and broken ribs.
“She’s just glad to get her own bed,” Jensen said. “Her dogs are happy to see her.”
The severe injuries forced both women to take the semester off so they can focus on a full recovery that includes months of rehabilitation.
“Their plan is to, by next fall, find another place to live together and start over,” Jensen said.
The frightening ordeal has made the two families about as close as the two college roommates.
“We’re all here for each other, we’re all supportive, we visited each other. You know, it’s a constant reminder that it’s good to keep family close and our family just got a little bit bigger,” Argon said.