Boothbay teen Emma Leonard, who was severely injured in the February 11 three-car accident in Woolwich and a patient at Maine Medical Center in Portland, is moving her fingers and toes, the swelling in her head is subsiding somewhat, and doctors have discovered she can breathe on her own for short periods, according to her father, John Leonard.

“We got a call from the doctor this morning saying they took out her breathing tube during a brief test last night and she was breathing on her own,” said Leonard on Thursday morning, February 13.

Doctors also discovered that Emma's ankle was severely twisted, not broken. The doctors operated and straightened the ankle yesterday.

“She's got cuts and bruises on her hands and arms, and the doctors are watching the swelling in her head. They said her brain moved during the impact and that some bleeding occurred around the brain,” Leonard said. He credited the stability of the Subaru station wagon she was driving and the airbag deploying with preventing further injuries to his daughter, who is 17 years old.

“We want to thank everyone for their concern and prayers,” Leonard said. “They've really helped.”

Leonard also wished to thank Jennifer Blackwell of Brunswick, who was the third person involved in the accident in which Walter Crosman, 45, of Wiscasset was killed. Crosman hit Blackwell's vehicle before hitting Leonard's Subaru head-on.

“She (Jennifer) got out of her car and held Emma's hand until the emergency crews arrived,” Leonard said.

Leonard and his wife, Donna, and their son, Jacob, have stayed in Portland since Tuesday.