Boy, 10, survives bullet to head

A 10-year-old boy is being hailed as a "medical miracle" after he survived a bullet to the head.

Dimitri Lacksingh was injured by a classmate who was playing with relative's gun.

The incident happened on Thursday afternoon, at Lacksingh’s Sookram Avenue and Mon Desir Road, South Oropouche.

He and his nine-year-old classmate of Rousillac Hindu School went to Lacksingh’s home where they found an unsecured pellet gun (Nitro Piston 10-shot gas charged rifle) and began playing with it. They had been dismissed from school early after the school hosted Divali celebrations.

Police said Lacksingh who was familiar with the weapon was showing his classmate how to operate it, unaware that the safety was off. As the other boy tried to operate the weapon, he pulled the trigger, discharging one round which struck Lacksingh’s head.

With the bullet lodged in his head, Lacksingh ran out of his home, bleeding from the wound to his head screaming, “I get shot. Oh God, I go dead.”

One of his uncles, Damion Singh, said the family immediately began thinking funeral, expecting the worse.

On Saturday morning, however, Singh said the family was rejoicing because by some "medical miracle," after an emergency surgery and two days in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the San Fernando General Hospital, he was alive and talking.

“I spoke to him this morning, He is walking, he is talking and he is out of the ICU. He has all his senses. It is a miracle. We thought he was going to die, especially after hearing how the nine-year-old boy (Jomol Modeste) from Chaguanas died,” Singh told the Newsday.

He said the entire incident is tragic and did not think the nine-year-old who pulled the trigger should be held accountable for Dimitri’s injury.

“It was negligence. If anybody is to be blamed it is the gun owner. He has had guns and gun-licence for 20-25 years. But it was loaded, with the safety off and not properly secured.”

Police have seized the weapon and also confiscated the owner's gun licence. No charges have yet been laid although statements have been taken.

Singh said he was not at the family’s home when the incident occurred and his brothers who are farmers, and hunters, were in the nearby garden. Dimitri’s mother died several years ago.

“I got the news around 1.30 pm on Thursday that there was an accident and upon further enquires heard Dimitri got shot by an air rifle.

“It is my understanding they came from school early and were playing with the gun inside the house. He was showing the other boy how to operate the weapon when it was discharged.

“Dimitri was aware, he was conscious, he ran outside and alerted neighbours and a cousin who called the police and ambulance. Police responded immediately once they heard gun shot.”

He was taken to the San Fernando General Hospital where emergency surgery was done to remove the bullet.

“Some shrapnel, fragments were removed. Doctors did not remove the bullet.”

Singh said because of the location of the bullet, doctors are very sceptical about removing it.

“It is in a very critical part of the brain, doctors don’t really want to go further as it may cause excessive bleeding. The bullet is hollow and just bigger than a match grain. I don’t know if he may have to live with it in his brain.

“He is young and healthy, my one concern is that if it remains it does not have any lasting damage.

“We just want to thank God he is alive. There is a little swelling on the face from the surgery but that should go down soon.”

Singh warned licenced firearm users to ensure their weapons are secured and to warn family members of the dangers.

“We hear so much about gun-related incidents but when it hits home, it is a different story.

“Thank God that gun only discharged one round at a time or we would have been telling a different story today. Oh God, I don’t even want to think about it,” he said.

Oropouche police are continuing investigations.