SAN ANTONIO -- A woman was rescued after she spent more than a day trapped inside her car, submerged in a creek.
Nita Dennis says she's lucky to be alive.
"I would cry and say God please help me," said Dennis.
Dennis was on her way home to Carrizo Springs last Friday when she fell asleep at the wheel. Her car hit a concrete barrier on Highway 83 and landed in a creek filled with water.
"I don't even know how long I had been unconscious," Dennis told News 4 WOAI.
When she woke up, her leg was throbbing in pain, and she couldn't move.
"The whole car had crushed in around me," recalled Dennis.
To make matters worse, she was neck-deep in creek water.
"I remember looking to the sides of me on both sides, and I could actually see animals eating on me," Dennis said about the catfish who were in the water with her.
As Dennis held her head up above the water, she she tried to stay positive.
"I remember thinking, 'It's almost daylight. So, somebody will see you pretty soon.'"
But it was 34 hours before help finally arrived.
"I'd seen feet come around," Dennis said. "And I'm like 'I'm here! I'm here!'"
Dennis was rushed to University Hospital where she was treated for a broken leg, torn ligaments in her knee, and cuts and bruises all over her body.
Dennis says she is very thankful for everyone who helped save her life that day.
Man who found her said "funny" feeling made him return to creek
Click here to watch News 4 WOAI's Erik Runge's report.Nita Dennis calls the man who found her in the creek her angel.
Max Gonzales told News 4 WOAI he just thanks God that he was there to help.
Gonzales has delivered ice for Reddy Ice in Uvalde for the past 41 years. Last Friday afternoon, Gonzales set out toward Crystal City for a delivery. He had no idea he was taking the same road Dennis had taken several hours earlier.
Gonzales said when he and his co-worker drove over the bridge where Dennis crashed, he saw something. They drove on by, thinking it was just the sun's reflection. But Gonzales couldn't let go of what he had seen.
"We went home, and I told my wife 'Something's bothering me,'" Gonzales explained.
The next day Gonzales went back, found Dennis' car, and called for help.
"I thought she was dead when I got there," said Gonzales.
Dennis was flown to University Hospital, and Gonzales went back to delivering ice.
"We've just been praying for her," Gonzales told News 4 WOAI.
Dennis left the Reeves Rehabilitation Center Thursday. Thursday evening, she and Gonzales spoke on the phone.
Gonzales: "I still want to meet you. I don't remember your face."
Dennis: "You can't remember my face?"
Gonzales: "I was too busy holding your hand."
It was a short phone call, but one that visibly touched Gonzales, who can now be considered a delivery man who delivered a second chance at life.
Dennis and Gonzales exchanged phone numbers and plan to meet soon.
