At first, Adrianna Hoskins thought it was a blanket she saw in the road.
The freshman at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln was driving a friend to get something to drink last month. The plan was to return to her dorm room and finish a school project together.
While Hoskins was driving down Antelope Valley Parkway, her friend asked her to turn her bright lights on after they saw something in the street.
“I saw a shoe and a purse, and I was, like, ‘That's a person,’†Hoskins said.
The person was Bri Calnan, who was hit by a van at the intersection of O Street and Antelope Valley Parkway at about 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 5. The driver fled the scene and still hasn't been found.
Calnan was walking to meet her boyfriend, who was picking her up from downtown. She pressed the walk button at the crosswalk, looked both ways and began to cross Antelope Valley Parkway heading east.
People are also reading…
But halfway across, Calnan saw a white cargo van heading toward her.
“I went into a state of shock and couldn’t move no matter how much I wanted to,†she said. “I thought this was the end.â€
Seconds later, Hoskins parked her car and got out with her friend to help Calnan.
“She wasn’t responsive for a while,†Hoskins said. “She was just kind of mumbling, and I could tell that she was in a lot of pain.â€
Hoskins, who had previously worked as a lifeguard at Aquacourt in Hastings, told her friend to call 911 while she kept asking Calnan questions. She was later assisted by two other passers-by.
Shortly after that, Hoskins’ friend found Calnan’s phone in a nearby bush.
“I was hanging onto her hand, and I was just like, ‘Is this your phone? What’s your name?’ Just kind of going through some processes that I know from lifeguarding,†Hoskins said. “It’s not very much like medical knowledge, but it is something.â€
At Calnan’s request, Hoskins called Calnan's boyfriend to let him know what had happened before emergency responders arrived.
“It was really scary to see someone in that much pain,†Hoskins said. “But everyone reacted really fast and I’m really thankful for everyone that was there.â€
Calnan said she doesn’t remember the incident, but felt “peaceful,†as if she had almost died but had been brought back. When asked by first responders if she knew what day, month or year it was, she had no answer.
“Many thoughts were racing through my head all at once: Was I gonna die? Was I paralyzed? Will I have surgery?†Calnan said. “I was scared. I had never felt this scared before.â€
At the hospital, Calnan was treated for a broken pelvis, a ruptured spleen, a fractured right shoulder and internal bleeding. A GoFundMe page — — has been set up for her.
Hoskins wasn't sure how severe Calnan's injuries were and wanted to check in on her after the incident, but hadn't been able to get Calnan's full name at the scene.
“I had been worried and not really sleeping,†Hoskins said. “And I had called the police station, and unfortunately, because of their protocol, they weren’t allowed to give that information.â€
But after her mother showed her an article about the incident that included Calnan’s full name, Hoskins reached out to her on Facebook.
“Immediately afterwards, I got messages from her sisters and her dad and some of her friends thanking me and thanking my friend and the other two people that I didn’t really know,†Hoskins said. “It brought a lot of peace to my heart, because I knew that she was going to have a rough road ahead.â€
Hoskins visited Calnan in the hospital a few days later, and the two have stayed in contact and become friends.
Calnan said her condition has improved a lot since the incident, though she's still in a wheelchair. In the hospital, something as simple as writing would be painful, but tasks like that have become easier in recent weeks.
“I sit at the edge of my bed for meals now, and it amazes me how much I’ve gotten better,†Calnan said. “I can even roll to my sides on my own, which really helps out my parents.â€
Despite analyzing video surveillance from areas around the intersection, collecting witness statements and following up on dozens of license plate numbers for vehicles possibly involved, the Lincoln Police Department hasn't identified a suspect in the case, according to Officer Angela Sands.Â
"We're hoping tips from Crimestoppers will keep coming in," Sands said. "It's frustrating, because you would hope by now that somebody would have come forward with information that would help us find this person. And it's frustrating for the victim, too, because you want to help them find some closure."Â Â
Hoskins, who attributed her lifeguard training to her actions that day, said she felt like she was the right person in the right place at the right time.
“For me, morally, there was no other option,†she said. “Getting out of the car and doing everything I could do was exactly what I needed to do.â€
Calnan thanked Hoskins and others who were on the scene in a Facebook post a few days after the incident, calling them “guardian angels.â€
“I do believe that Adrianna was meant to be there for me when it happened,†Calnan said. “Sometimes, things are just a coincidence, but I felt like she was meant to be there.â€
Hoskins also said she was thankful for everyone who came to Calnan’s aid, including first responders and medical staff, others who stopped to help and her friend, who also helped calm Hoskins down after the incident.
“It’s not a one-person-type deal, where it’s like, ‘You’re the hero, you’re the only reason she’s here,’†she said. “I think it was a collection of everyone’s teamwork, and the fact that she is so strong and she was so positive throughout this whole thing.â€
Calnan said she had often blamed herself after the incident, but has come to realize there was nothing she could do. Dwelling in the past won’t help her, she said, and she knows she’ll get on her feet again soon.
“I really don’t think I would be doing as good as I am if it wasn’t for everyone who has been supporting me,†Calnan said. “I almost lost my life, but I am super proud of how far I’ve gotten.â€
Anyone with information about the hit-and-run is asked to call LPD at 402-441-6000 or Crimestoppers at 402-475-3600.