Alex Hook, a first grader, is in critical condition after getting hit in the head by a rock flung by a lawnmower at his elementary school. The incident took place during the recess break at at his elementary school.
A GoFundMe account setup by Hook's aunt, Michelle Delaquila Koertgen, has raised over $129,000 since Friday.
Hook Was Playing in the Recess
La Crosse Tribune reported that the lawnmower, being operated by a landscaper, was 72 feet away from the six-year-old when he was playing with his friends. Officials from the Kenosha County Sheriff's Department revealed that the lawnmower, on the other side of the chain-link fence, was reportedly mowing the grassy median in the center of the street near the school.
The GoFundMe page revealed that Hook was immediately flown to Children's Wisconsin Hospital in Wauwatosa where he underwent an emergency brain surgery. A piece of bone was removed from his brain, the post on the page stated.
In a statement issued after the incident, Silver Lake School District Administrator Jon Schleusner expressed great concern and devastation.
"Over the past few days, we have seen our staff, students and the community-at-large express great concern and devastation over the accident that occurred on September 10th. At Riverview Elementary School we have made counselors available to students and staff to help with the emotions and trauma of this accident. Our staff have been proactively working with law enforcement and due to the sensitive nature of the investigation and to protect the privacy of our students we cannot provide further comment at this time."
Hook's Condition is Stable
In a social media update, Hooks's father Kirbey Hook revealed that the boy was placed in a medically induced coma. "It's scary, I mean we're all worried right now," Kirbey said during a FB Live video.
Stating that Hook was shortly taken off a ventilator on Thursday following which he was briefly awake and responded to his parents in nods, Kirbey said that his vocal chords were swollen. "Unfortunately, the tube he had down his throat was making his vocal chords swell up and he had some... it was not good, his vocal chords swelled up and he couldn't breathe very well," Kirbey said. It was because the complications that doctors placed Hook in a medically induced coma.
"We're praying," Kirbey Hook said. "Everyone just keep praying."
