Father seriously injured in crash while saving kids still in coma, already had both legs amputated

HARRIS COUNTY - A father who was critically injured while trying to rescue his children Saturday is still in a coma, nearly a week later. 

BACKGROUND: Family of 4 with small children among 5 involved in major crash on Hardy Toll Rd

Alfredo Herrera already had to have his legs amputated and is still in the hospital after Saturday’s tragic car wreck on Hardy Toll Road near Rankin Road. 

The family of four was driving on the tollway when loved ones say the wife fell asleep at the wheel, her husband then tried from the passenger seat to gain control, and they smashed into the concrete barrier. Their vehicle ultimately stopped across several lanes of the highway and as Alfredo rushed out of the SUV to get his kids out of harm's way another car came along and smashed into him.

"He’s still in critical condition in a coma," explains his Stepmom Esperansa Herrera. "He’s still not able to breathe on his own. He took a breath on his own yesterday even though he’s on the ventilator."

"I love my brother," says his brother Augustin Herrera III. "He’s always there for me. He’s a very good person, amazing person. It hurts me. I’m broken."

At 1:30 a.m.on Saturday Alfredo Herrera, his wife and kids were heading home from his mother-in-law’s when just seconds after their single-car crash into that concrete median, he jumped out of the wrecked vehicle to get to his babies in the backseat to carry them from the middle of the highway to safety "and a car came out of nowhere and T-boned them as he was out of the vehicle," says his stepmom.

"He was gone for 30 minutes," his brother added. "They were doing CPR for 30 minutes. He came back, he’s back for a reason. I believe, I know he’s going to wake up."

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"His heart rate is really strong, vitals are good, has slight movement in his eyelids, fingers, says Alfredo’s dad. "These are all good signs from the man up above."

Although his wife and two babies were still inside the vehicle when that second crash occurred they and the other driver were all also injured. Everyone except Alfredo has now been released from the hospital, including his 1 year old daughter and 2-year-old son. 

"The 2-year-old he did suffer some head trauma," says Alfredo’s stepmom. "He does have some blood clots in the back of his head."

Alfredo’s dad says even though he’s a military war veteran, this is the hardest thing he’s ever had to deal with. "

"It really hurts a lot, [a] real loss for words right now," he said.

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"I just ask for everyone’s prayers," Augustin Herrera III added. "I have confidence and I believe that may brother's going to wake up because he’s strong. He’s the strongest one I know". 

Alfredo Herrera does not have insurance. So the family is rallying together to get him prosthetics, rehab, and the therapy he’ll need, they say not if, but when he pulls through. If you would like to help there is a GoFundMe Page. Just search for his sister-in-law's name Alayjah Juarez, who set up the fundraiser. 

Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman says no one has been charged, but he says that could change pending toxicology results.