Woman dragged by van in Vancouver is awake and aware of life-altering facial injuries

A 24-year-old woman who was dragged by a van for several blocks in Vancouver last month suffering both life-threatening and life-altering injuries, is now awake and on the road to recovery.

Desiree Evancio has undergone multiple surgeries to reconstruct her face after she walked between a van and a trailer it was towing before she was dragged for several blocks in downtown Vancouver on Oct. 12.

Police said she walked between the van and trailer as it was stopped at a traffic light.

“She is very awake and I believe will be fully awake moving forward until her next operation,” Desiree Evancio's sister Ashley Danh wrote on a GoFundMe page.

"She is now aware of all of her injuries. I think she understands the extent of everything and how she was close to dying."

Evancio will need a prosthetic eye and nose, and surgery has been done to restore her upper lip, Dahl wrote, noting that her sister is now able to contribute to the medical decisions.

“She was heavily sedated for just under two weeks so her face could heal from the surgery they performed. She's been quite awake for a number of days now, and has been able to write to communicate with family and friends and the nurses which is so great.”

Dahl says her sister can't remember the accident.

The GoFundMe campaign has raised more than $236,000 so far.

— With files from The Canadian Press

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