11-year-old girl takes wheel after mom has seizure in Iowa

FREMONT COUNTY, Iowa -- A medical condition for a mother behind the wheel turned into a life-saving act for her 11-year-old daughter.

Katie Boven and her mom, Shilow, were driving from Missouri to Nebraska to visit Katie's father Saturday afternoon. As they drove northbound on Interstate 29 near Fremont County, Shilow had a seizure.

"It's unbelievable," Katie said. "Her head was turning back. She passed out with her eyes open. It was kind of freaking me out."

Katie remained calm and took control of the SUV.

"When I saw her shaking, I unbuckled my seat belt and I had to crawl over (her)," she said. "I had to sit on her lap. I had to move the steering wheel."

The sixth-grader couldn't reach the brakes.

"So, I had to take her foot off the gas pedal, and I had to steer it into the grass," she said.

While Shilow remained unconscious, Katie needed help.

"I waved for help and these two nice ladies, her name was Haley (and) I don' t remember the other name," she said. "But the other one was a nurse and she was helping my mom."

Paramedics arrived, as did Sgt. Mike Wesack with the Iowa state patrol.

"When she's telling me the story, I'm just scratching my head, thinking like, 'Wow,' what a brave little girl here," Wesack said.

Katie's father, Troy, also rushed to the scene and was amazed.

"I'm proud of her, so it's a lot of emotions," Troy Boven said. "I believe God was watching over them this time."

Shilow is out of the hospital and tells KETV NewsWatch 7's Chinh Doan she had no history of seizures.

Doctors are still trying to figure out what caused the incident.

Meanwhile, the family hopes to find the two women who stopped to help Katie and Shilow to thank them.