"The car kind of collapsed around Clarissa and caused a lot of stress to her legs, (but) as we understand it there is nothing broken there, just probably some trauma. She has been in a lot of pain. They had to really work to get her out of" the vehicle, she said.

"Gary, the father, is up, he's out of the hospital and he's working to take care of the two other kids, who are in two different hospitals. And as of today, they (Clarissa and Caleb) are going to be fine."

In the Hale Centre Theatre's production, Clarissa played the role of Elizabeth, one of the young girls from Ebenezer Scrooge's past. Caleb played Scrooge as a young boy and also doubled as a Cratchit child.

"The nurses at Primary Children's were in tears today," said Dietlein, who visited with the survivors Sunday. "The doctor who had to explain to the father what had happened (to 7-year-old Julinna) said it was the hardest thing she'd ever had to do.

Dietlein said the Cerans do not have any family members who live in Utah. But she said Caleb told her that his uncle, his father's brother, had flown in from California on Sunday to help Gary Ceran pick up the pieces of what has been a challenging life.

"They have a strong network of friends," Dietlein said, adding that she is sure some sort of fund will be set up to help the three surviving family members.

"This family has been through a tremendous amount of heartache," she said.

Dietlein said Clarissa told her Sunday that she had never known anyone more mature for his age than her 15-year-old brother, Ian. Indeed, all of the Ceran children are mature beyond their years because of the hardships they have endured, Dietlein said.

Dietlein said Gary Ceran worked for a long time as an accountant for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints but is now working for a private company. She said Cheryl Ceran had been homeschooling Caleb.

The family previously lived in South Jordan before moving to Utah County.

Since Friday, eight fatalities have been reported in five separate Utah traffic accidents.

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E-mail: zman@desnews.com