Lisa Marchesoni
Posted: Tuesday, February 9, 2010 1:05 pm

Riverdale High School senior Alisha Nance, who was rescued from a near-drowning Friday, showed signs of recovery when she opened her eyes, a family friend said.

Nance, 17, was driving when her car flipped into a creek off Barfield Road. Motorists flipped her car over and prevented it from floating down river until the dive team took over. Officials estimated she was underwater about 30 minutes.

She is in critical condition at Vanderbilt University Medical Center where she responded to extreme pain therapy, said family friend Pam Hurt.

“That’s a good sign,” Hurt said, adding that shows brain activity. “We’re still taking baby steps. We’re very hopeful. We need tons of prayers.”

Her parents are doing well and asking everyone to keep praying.

Some of the motorists who risked their lives have visited the family at the hospital.

“Those people are amazing,” Hurt said. “They just don’t have a clue” of how important Nance’s life is. “She loves life more than anything. She is so confident of her goals. It will totally be worth it for them (the motorists) in the long run.”

Nance was accepted to the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. She won a DECA award Monday and students intend to bring it to the hospital this weekend. Students made a prayer blanket for her and wrote a song entitled, “Alisha’s Prayer” that should be available on I tunes.

“She is very humble and would flip if she knew what was going on abut her,” Hurt said. Hurt pledged to have a party for Nance and the rescuers and “the whole world” when she’s released.

Hurt hopes to open up an account to raise money for Alisha’s medical expenses.

Also, the family doesn’t want the Rutherford County Highway Department to wait until March to install a guardrail to prevent other people from slipping into the water.

“We want it done now so no one else’s child flips into the river,” Hurt said. “It should have been done a long time ago. It’s fortunately nobody lost their life there. We’re not losing this one either.”