Woman’s condition improving after being trapped in car

SEATTLE – A woman who spent more than a week trapped in the wreckage of her sport-utility vehicle has been upgraded to serious condition, a spokeswoman at Harborview Medical Center said Sunday.

Tanya Rider, 33, was admitted in critical condition Thursday with kidney failure and other injuries, after a search team using cell phone technology tracked down her mangled SUV in a ravine off a highway in Renton, southeast of Seattle.

By Sunday morning, she was in serious condition in the hospital’s intensive care unit, hospital spokeswoman Susan Gregg-Hanson said.

Rider’s kidneys failed because of toxins from a muscle injury and dehydration. Doctors say her brain function is normal, and she was able to move her arms and legs in response to commands while she was sedated.

Investigators believe Rider ran off the road Sept. 20 while driving home from working overnight at a department store.