5 Months Later, No Suspects In Hit And Run On Woman In Wheelchair
SPRING VALLEY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- She was run down and forgotten.
A Spring Valley woman has been confined to her bed for five months after a hit-and-run driver nearly took her life.
CBS 2's Lou Young reports exclusively on the search for the motorist and the valiant fight of the victim who was left behind.
Cynthia Gershanow isn't the type person to feel sorry for herself. She was already disabled when the hit-and-run driver ran her down while she was riding in her motorized wheelchair. Now, life has gotten tougher than she ever imagined.
"I can't get up. My leg doesn't bend enough for me to sit, to get up," said Gershanow, adding she'd been bedridden since Oct. 28 of last year.
That was the day it happened. She was crossing busy Eckerson Road in Spring Valley. The impact broke seven bones, including her lower back, hip, leg and both shoulders.
"When I got hit I went flying about 10-15 feet and landed face down so the chair was on top of me," Gershanow said.
Gershanow's wheelchair weighs well over 300 pounds. It is solid, almost impossible to move. The car that hit her and knocked her over must have been going very fast. Police have no description of the hit-and-run vehicle, but there might be a clue. The arm rest that held Cynthia's left arm up is missing the part with the tray where her arm rested. It's presumed that piece of metal went with vehicle.
If you see something like that stuck in a car, perhaps it was the hit-and-run vehicle. Ramapo Police would like a call.
Gershanow said she's not thinking about that, though she just wants her life back.
"I was doing fine. I had a very active life. We go out all the time, me and my boyfriend. We go out to the mall. We go to dinner. I want my freedom back and I'm going to get it someway," she said.
Therapists aren't sure that will happen. Until it does Gershanow is hoping someone might donate an ambulance-style stretcher so her caregivers can at least take her outside now that the weather has improved.
Ramapo Police said no witnesses have come forward yet. Investigators said they believe excessive speed was the primary cause of the accident.
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