The woman who was hit by a passenger train on May 18, is expected to live and recovering slowly, but the medical expenses involved are adding up.
Camerine Mallery Reynolds, 27, of Biloxi was on the train trestle with her husband, Ronnie, that morning when the couple saw an Amtrak heading towards them. Both people were hit, but Ronnie did not survive, according to previous coverage. The train was traveling at about 70 miles per hour at that time, previous coverage states.
Camerine was airlifted to a hospital for treatment of numerous injuries. Her mother, Vicky Scott, said her daughter has since undergone more than 20 surgeries to save her life, and many more are planned to eventually get her back to a life of mobility.
However, it will be a long road. Scott said her daughter is expected to be in the hospital for several more months before doctors discharge her.
Now, the family faces mounting medical bills. Scott added that Camerin does not have medical insurance, and when she is finally released from the hospital, she will need regular care due to the long recovery period expected because of the injuries she sustained.
Scott said that as the train approached her daughter said she tried to stand on the edge of the trestle, but it struck her on the side and somehow caught her foot, dragging her. Camerin told her mother that she was conscious when the train started to drag her, Scott said.
As a result, Camerin suffered injuries to her foot, part of which had to be amputated, every bone on the left side of her body was broken, several internal organs were damaged and her pelvis was shattered. Just about every day Camerin either undergoes some sort of surgery or is put under for any number of other medical procedures, Scott said. This week she underwent her third operation to one of her arms in an attempt to reattach nerves.
While the specifics of why the couple was on the tracks are still unclear, Scott said her daughter said the couple thought the tracks were no longer in use. When they saw the train approaching, it did not appear to be moving as fast as it was, so they thought they could get out of the way in time.
At this point, Camerin is suffering from a severe case of PTSD.
“She said that all she hears is the train on the tracks,” Scott said.
While she won’t be able to walk when she is released from the hospital, Scott said that her daughter did not suffer brain or spinal damage, so the hope is she will regain her mobility. That means she may end up leaving the hospital only to immediately be taken to a rehabilitation facility.
Scott said that Monday made four weeks that her daughter has been in the hospital, and the doctors have alerted Scott to the fact that more months are ahead.
“All I know is they call it a big ticket bill,” Scott said.
As such the family is looking for community support to help offset the growing medical bill. A gofundme has been established to raise money to help cover those expenses and can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/f/hit-by-a-train-and-survived-now-to-live.
Friday, Scott was in the process of packing her things to make the move from her current home in Las Vegas to move closer to her daughter to help care for Camerin’s children and Camerin.
“Her recovery is miraculous considering how much injury she sustained,” Scott said.