Baby safely delivered after pregnant Coram mom suffers brain injury in crash

Tanya Fernandez’s baby was delivered via emergency C-section following the April 15 wreck

The mother of two remains in a vegetative state, while the community has rallied on behalf of her sons

A community fundraiser has raised nearly $40,000 in just five days for the two sons of a Coram woman who reportedly suffered irreversible brain injuries in a catastrophic dump truck crash last month.

Tanya Fernandez, 39, was seven months pregnant when her 2007 Toyota collided with a northbound dump truck at the intersection of Patchogue-Mount Sinai Road and Pine Road on April 15 at 3:37 p.m., police and her family said.

The Coram mom was trying to make a lefthand turn from southbound Patchogue-Mount Sinai Road into the eastbound lanes of Pine Road when the crash occurred, police said.

Her baby was successfully delivered via emergency C-section following the collision and remains in the NICU, where he will stay until he is strong enough to come home, Fernandez’s older sister wrote on a GoFundMe page she established for her sister’s newborn and 8-year-old son Sebastian.

The crash left Tanya Fernandez with a severe and irreversible brain injury, leaving her in a vegetative state, her sister wrote.

“Those who were blessed to know her, knew Tanya was more than a devoted mother, daughter, sister, and friend,” Tatiana Fernandez stated. “She was the heart of every room she walked into.”

‘We can’ provide

A passenger in Fernandez’s vehicle, Laura Thiele, 37, of Centereach, was taken to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of serious physical injuries, police said. The dump truck driver, Matthew Corliss, 35, of Centereach, was transported to the same hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.

The GoFundMe campaign, launched April 30, has raised $38,166 toward a $45,000 goal as of late Monday afternoon. The funds will go toward funeral expenses, medical bills and a trust for both of Fernandez’s children.

“Tanya can no longer provide for her sons,” the campaign states. “We can.”

_{Top: courtesy of GoFundMe}