Son upbeat after mom rescued from manhole

Irene Berrett is 71 years old. But you would never know it from listening to her son talk about her.

"She's a pretty spry 71-year-old," Britt Berrett said. "She's got a lot of spunk in her."

Irene Berrett underwent 11 hours of surgery Tuesday and was expected to be in surgery again today after falling Tuesday morning into an open manhole in a strip mall parking lot in Draper.

But her family remains upbeat and optimistic that this will only temporarily slow the outgoing woman.

Irene Berrett fell 17 feet into an open manhole near 1200 East and 12300 South. She landed in 6 to 8 inches of water and sewage. A septic worker had just finished cleaning grease from the area below the manhole and had turned his back when Berrett dropped into the hole.

No cones or warnings were posted notifying shoppers of the open manhole.

She shattered her leg above the knee and broke her ankle, Britt Berrett said. Metal plates were put in her leg during reconstructional surgery Tuesday. After surgery she was moved into the Intensive Care Unit's shock trauma center.

She also suffered cracked ribs as well as injuries to her spine and hip.

"She is doing as well as can be expected," her son said. "Right now we're very concerned about infection."

Because she sat in sewage water "rising above her ears," with open wounds, Britt said infection was the biggest concern.

Britt Berrett is a hospital administrator in Dallas. He flew into Salt Lake City Wednesday morning to be with his mother.

"Who would've thought someone would fall 20 feet into an open manhole? It's unbelievable," he said.

To make things even harder for the Berrett family, Irene's husband is currently undergoing radiation treatment for prostate cancer.

"When it rains it pours," Britt Berrett said. "It is tough on our family."

But the Berretts are a tight-knit group. Irene has five children and 20 grandchildren. Last year they all went on a cruise together, Britt Berrett said. And they had planned on renting two houseboats later this year at Lake Powell, where Irene wanted to be first on the jet skis, he said.

"She's just full of fun," he said.