Wareham Rallies Around Family Of Hannah Strom After Rowing Team Car Crash
WAREHAM (CBS) -- There is one word bringing an entire community together, and it's "pray." In the town of Wareham, it's been placed on a restaurant sign while the owner's daughter Hannah Strom remains in a coma in a Florida hospital. She was among the members of the Holy Cross women's rowing team who were seriously injured Wednesday when their transport van collided with a pickup truck in Vero Beach.
At Kool Kone, employees are feeling the pain for the Strom family and are now trying to raise money to help them.
"They're a second family to us. Anything that happens to them happens to us," said manager Mel Zacamy.
She was in the restaurant when Hannah's father Tom was notified his daughter had been in an accident, though the details were few at the time.
"He did a lot of pacing. Just the anxiety of the moment was very high. I watched the girl grow up," Zacamy said.
Hannah is on a ventilator and underwent surgery Thursday. Zacamy says she has a broken femur, broken pelvis, partially collapsed lung and a brain bleed. She underwent surgery to relieve pressure on her brain.
"The call Tom got that day no parent should ever get," said assistant manager Joshua Jenkins.
Employees have put donation jars in every takeout window to alert the community they are raising funds for medical expenses and any travelling the family will need to do to stay with Hannah in the hospital.
"Coming here is the best thing," said customer Elke Pierre. "We all feel so helpless, but we can come here and give what we can."
Holy Cross has also released the names of the other injured team members. Junior Paige Cohen is still hospitalized along with sophomore Anne Comcowich, freshmen Maggie O'Leary and Bianca McIver and their head coach Patrick Diggins. Senior Maegan Moriarty was released Thursday.
Brianne Rett, the sister of Grace Rett, who died in the crash has also released a statement, "Fortunately, it seems that she probably passed instantly. I know that if she had the opportunity to fight she would have, she's the strongest person I know."