Wrong-way crash victim may lose leg

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. —
Relatives of the survivor of a wrong-way wreck in Gwinnett County said she faces close to $1 million in mounting medical bills and may lose a leg.

Police said an 18-year-old drunken driver hit Paula Holden head-on in early September on Peachtree Industrial Boulevard.

The crash left Holden with two broken legs, two broken arms and eight broken ribs.

"The bones that were broken that could be fixed have been fixed. Unfortunately, her right leg that was crushed in the car is still very badly damaged," Holden's stepmother Jackie Crumpler told Channel 2 Action News.

Thus far, Holden, 43, has undergone six surgeries. Crumpler said doctors said she will need many more if they can save her right leg. 

Her father told Channel 2's Erica Byfield she was looking for a job at the time of the accident and has no insurance.

"The financial strain is going to be unbelievable," Paul Crumpler said.

Holden's family is asking her to focus on her recovery and have set up a website for donations for her medical bills.

"It's going to be such a long road," said Jackie Crumpler.

Gwinnett police said they will charge the other driver, Brittany Dutka, when she is released from the hospital.

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WSBTV