Dallas woman beating the odds as she recovers from hit-and-run crash that killed roommate

DALLAS - A 23-year-old Dallas woman is making an incredible recovery after she was critically injured in a hit-and-run crash back in February.

Camryn Herriage has been on a ventilator for nearly 2 months, but this week that changed.

The crash injured 5 people and killed Camryn's college roommate and friend Sarah House.

Shirley Campanello, Herriage's mother, prepared for the worst when she watched her daughter be wheeled into surgery.

"He said it would last 6 hours. He was out in an hour and half and when he came out, I knew she was gone. I just knew it because he was out so fast, but it was good. It was good news, not bad," recalled Campanello.

It's a feeling she became all too familiar with, from heart surgery to brain surgery.

"85% of people live through that. Then she had surgery on her aorta. 23% of people die from that. 98% wouldn’t have made it, but she did," said Campanello.

Now, she's pushing aside those numbers because Camryn is defying the odds.

Herriage came off the ventilator this week, a milestone doctors at Methodist Dallas didn't expect.

"It's just amazing how God has worked through all of this," said Campanello.

On February 11, the recent Texas Tech grad was in a car full of friends when they were struck from behind while waiting at a light in Dallas' Trinity Groves neighborhood.

Dallas police say a Ford pickup driven by Carmen Guerrero caused the chain-reaction crash.

Carmen Guerrero

According to investigators, Guerrero, 27, took off on foot wearing "a small black dress and white clubbing shoes." She was arrested more than a week later.

The backseat of the vehicle Camryn was in was completely crushed.

Herriage and her friends were rushed to the hospital, but her college roommate, Sara House, was killed.

It's an immense loss Camryn still doesn't know about as her friends stop by and visit.

"You could see the doubt in her eyes. Why is he coming to see me without Sarah? We feel like Sarah is pushing her along," said Campanello.

Camryn still has a long fight.

She has a tube down her throat to help her breathe. It is unclear the full extent of the brain damage, requiring her to relearn even simple motions.

Her family is holding on to the fact, one day Camryn will get to go home.

"We have been told we aren't. We were told by several people this is the best we could do," said Campanello. "They were pretty set that she would be dependent on a ventilator. It was hope. That was all we had."

Camryn will spend at least two more months at Methodist before she's moved to a rehab facility.

As for the suspect, Carmen Guerrero, she remains in the Dallas County Jail this evening.

She faces several charges, including manslaughter.

FOX 4 reached out to her attorney multiple times this week for any comment.

At this time, we have not received a response.