MIRACLE ON PICCADILLY STBy Nalinee Seelal Wednesday, August 8 2012
A two-year-old boy is in serious condition at the children’s hospital of the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope after tumbling down 26 steps to land some 50 feet below at Piccadilly Street, East Dry River, Port-of-Spain on Monday night.
The boy, Kelon Rodriguez, underwent several tests and scans at the surgical ward of the children’s hospital at the medical complex yesterday while being closely monitored by his distressed mother, Nikita Rodriguez. Nikita is yet to receive word on whether any surgery would be carried out on her son.
According to police reports, at about 9 pm on Monday, Kelon, who was staying with his cousin Anika Rodriguez, was walking in the yard of Anika’s home in East Dry River, from one side to the next, when he reportedly slipped on a mossy part of the steps and began his headlong tumble down the 26 steps to the street 50 feet below.
When he fell to the street, the screaming child was picked up by Anika who rushed him to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital.
Doctors at the Port-of-Spain hospital managed to stabilise the boy and he was transferred to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex and warded at the children’s hospital.
Anika was asked by officers of the Besson Street Police Station to give a statement on the mishap and they also visited the scene, took photographs and were even shown the moss on the steps where Kelon slipped and fell down the steps.
Anika told Newsday yesterday she spent all of Monday night at the children’s hospital with Kelon and she was still trying to come to terms with the incident. She said she was accustomed to taking care of Kelon and was extremely saddened over the incident which almost cost the young boy his life.
“I still see images in my mind of Kelon tumbling from the steps and when he landed at the bottom my heart felt heavy and I begged God to spare his life,” said Anika.
Also yesterday, Nikita, the worried mother of Kelon, told Newsday she was praying for her son to recover quickly and has offered prayers of thanks to God for sparing his life.
The young mother said she was at her home in east Trinidad, on Monday night, when she received information that her son had fallen down a flight of 26 steps. She said when she arrived at Port-of-Spain General Hospital, she observed her son was vomiting blood and complaining about pains to his abdomen.
“I just held on to my son and wept but I am hoping that the tests prove that he will soon be out of hospital and back to his normal self,” she said.
When Newsday visited Kelon at the children’s hospital in Mt Hope yesterday, he appeared weak and spoke softly to his mother while at the same time complaining about pains to his stomach. Medical sources revealed the boy suffered injuries to his head, stomach and back. Doctors suspect he may have suffered internal bleeding and every effort was being made yesterday to deal with the medical challenges of the patient. Officers of the Besson Street Police Station told Newsday they were treating the fall of the child as an accident pending further enquiries.
