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A Sterling man died Saturday at Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage after being in critical condition for almost a week due to injuries sustained in a car accident.

Ryan Sholin, 19, a 2007 graduate of Cook Inlet Academy, was a passenger of Raymond Tepp, 24, of Kenai, who lost control of his 2007 Pontiac G6 on the morning of April 27. According to an Alaska State Trooper press release posted late that day, trooper dispatch received two 911 calls at approximately 5:35 a.m. reporting the vehicle collision. Tepp was traveling west on Gaswell Road when he lost control of his vehicle near the intersection of Jones Stub and Gaswell Road. His vehicle went off the roadway and impacted an equipment trailer, parked approximately 20 feet off the road. Tepp and Sholin weren't wearing their seatbelts, but it is unknown at this time whether alcohol was involved. The investigation into the accident continues.

Tepp and Sholin were airlifted to hospitals in Anchorage the morning of the accident, said Bonnie Nichols, spokeswoman for Central Peninsula Hospital. Tepp was discharged from Alaska Native Medical Center on Thursday, said public relations manager Brandy Dixon.

Jeremiah Judy drove past the wreck on Gaswell Road early on the morning of April 27 and made it home before he decided to turn his mother's Ford Expedition around.

It was approximately 4:45 a.m., Judy had just gotten off work as an inserter at the Peninsula Clarion when he found a blue 2007 Pontiac G6, top peeled back, hood smashed in. When Judy approached the vehicle he found Tepp trying to crawl out of the car. Sholin had severe injuries to his head and torso

"(He) was lucky to be breathing," Judy said, adding that when he moved Sholin into a sitting position, his breathing was restored. "They didn't have their seat belts on. I didn't know what to do."

When Judy shined his headlights on the vehicle, he said the driver stopped moving and curled up in the fetal position. Tepp was shivering, so Judy grabbed his mother's dog blanket and wrapped Tepp up to keep him warm. Tepp's face was badly beat up, Judy said, and both air bags had deployed.

"(Sholin) was conscious, he was trying to make sense of what I was saying," Judy said, adding that Tepp would grunt every time Judy asked him a question.

Judy ran around the neighborhood knocking on doors until he found someone who would let him use a phone to call 911. While he waited for troopers and paramedics to arrive, he made sure both victims stayed warm.

Now, a week later, Judy says he's glad he was there to help.

"I still think about it," he said. "I got all the way home I thought I better turn back (and) I'm thankful I did."

Jessica Cejnar can be reached at jessica.cejnar@peninsulaclarion.com.