Denver teacher recovering after suffering major injuries in suspected DUI crash

A high school teacher from Denver is recovering from serious injuries after a suspected DUI crash in Thornton.

According to Thornton PD, the crash happened Friday in the area of 104th Ave and McKay Street.

Thanh Nguyen, 24, an English teacher at Abraham Lincoln High suffered major injuries, along with her fiancé, Khanh. Both were taken to the hospital.

Thanh Nguyen

Thornton PD said the at-fault driver died from his injuries.

Nguyen's friends said she suffered spinal fractures, heart damage, multiple broken bones and internal bleeding, while both of Khanh's legs were broken.

Thanh Nguyen

They said Nguyen was rushed into emergency surgery, and remained in the ICU, under observation and awaiting additional surgeries.

Denver7 spoke with teachers and staff at Abraham Lincoln High who said this all happened just days before the first day of school.

"My classroom is right across the hall, and just to not see her face every day here has been hard," said teacher, Renee Sproull, "But I know that when she comes back, she'll get so much love."

Thanh Nguyen

Sproull said she's been helping with preparing Ms. Nguyen's classroom in any way she can, "I put her desks where they need to be, and I put her books, or the rest of her books on her bookshelf, and I helped her get her desk stuff put away so when she comes back, it can be ready to go."

Principal Antonio Esquibel said the entire school staff has come together to provide support, write cards, send video messages and visiting her in the hospital.

Thanh Nguyen

"She's a very vibrant and just exciting teacher to be around. But most importantly, her students love her," said Principal Esquibel. "We care for her and we're pulling for her, and we miss her, and we don't want her to worry about things. We're going to cover for her and make sure the team comes together. But most importantly, she's an amazing person, and I'm just really excited that she and her and her fiancé are gonna be on the mend pretty quickly."

Thornton PD said although they suspect alcohol was a factor in the crash, they won't know for sure until the results of the driver's toxicology report come back.

Nguyen's loved ones have launched a GoFundMe fundraiser to support her during her recovery.

If you'd like to help click here.