Family sets up tent outside hospital to be near woman in ICU

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – A South Florida woman is fighting for her life after a personal watercraft accident on the water.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, her family has to go to great lengths to be by her side.

The Margate family desperately wants to be there for Kaitlin Alexander who, over the weekend, was in a serious accident on the water.

But, since they can’t be in the hospital with her, they’ve done the next best thing.

"It’s, you know, the hardest thing I’ve ever had to deal with," said Luis Wick, Kaitlin's boyfriend.

He said he and Kaitlin were taking turns with some friends riding a See Doo personal watercraft near Delray Beach on Sunday.

He knew something was wrong, he said, when after a while, Kaitlin didn't come back.

"We went out to look for her and thankfully there was a lot of people who hopped on jet skis and boats and stuff and helped us look for her," he said.

It turns out she had somehow lost control and crashed into a boat lift, which knocked her unconscious and sent her into the water.

Fortunately, someone saw what happened and pulled her out only moments later. She was rushed to Delray Medical Center.

Kaitlin is a former news reporter who, in the last few years, worked for several South Florida sports teams and events, leaving a strong impression everywhere she went.

Now though, she’s in the ICU and, because of COVID-19, her family, who live in Broward County, can’t even be by her side.

But they did find a way to be nearby.

"So because we couldn’t get in there I kind of brought the waiting room to the parking lot," said Kaitlin's mom Christina Alexander.

The family has set up a tent outside the hospital, along with lawn chairs and even a banner, so they can be there for her, even if they can’t be with her.

"I’m just so thankful that in this storm of life we’ve been going through, that she’s a fighter, she’s going to pull through this and that she’s going to have a great story to tell," said Alexander.

Kaitlin suffered several broken bones and has already had two surgeries. Her family said she has made some incredible strides and they hope next week that she’ll be moved to a rehab center, where she can continue to recover.