Mom says son fighting for life in ICU after freak accident
By Sarah Fili
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PLATTSMOUTH, Nebraska (KETV) — A Plattsmouth High School junior is fighting for his life after an accident outside his home.
The 17-year-old’s mother said her son’s friend ran inside her home to call for help last Sunday night.
His mother said his recovery so far has been a roller coaster, and now, the costs of the care are adding up.
“I thought my son was dead,” Becca O’Brien said.
O’Brien rushed out of her home last Sunday night to find her son face down in a large pool of blood.
She said her son’s friend told her Christopher hit his head on the ground.
“I knew it wasn’t a trip and fall, I knew it was serious,” O’Brien said.
Medics rushed the teen to Nebraska Medicine.
“They couldn’t tell me if he was going to make it, so I thought there was a good chance that we would lose him,” O’Brien said.
She said police are working to learn what led up to the accident while O’Brien watches her son fight for his life in the intensive care unit.
“It’s been devastating and scary,” she said.
She said he has a traumatic brain injury. Parts of his skull have been removed to allow his brain to swell, and he’s in a medically induced coma.
“Originally they were thinking he might only be here for a few months. But now, we could be looking at a considerable amount of time into next year,” O’Brien said.
She said her son was hoping to go to culinary school. Now his future is up in the air, but she says he is determined.
“He has pure unadulterated drive, so I know he’s fighting with everything in him,” she said.
She calls it a freak accident but said whatever happened has changed their lives forever.
“Just how important it is to be safe and careful and think twice before you do something dangerous, because we are very lucky to even still have Christopher,” O’Brien said.
O’Brien said the outpouring of support on social media has been overwhelming.
The family has set up a GoFundMe for medical costs as well as to care for Mendes’ other siblings.
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