A seven-year-old boy has defied a less than 1% chance of survival after suffering a rare “internal decapitation” in a horror crash.
Mark Collier was left unconscious after the car he was travelling in with his mum Adrianna Medina was hit by an alleged drink driver.
The youngster had to be resuscitated after his heart stopped for 10 minutes at the crash site and then again for three minutes in the ambulance, according to his mum.
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Doctors said Mark had suffered an atlanto-occipital dislocation – a rare and often fatal injury also known as an internal decapitation.
Adrianna claims medics warned her her son had a less than 1% chance of surviving his injuries, let alone recovering.
She was later told that if Mark did survive, he was likely to remain in a vegetative state.
But the youngster stunned his family by waking up 12 days later.
He is now alert and able to communicate, but requires 24-hour nursing care at home.
“On the night of the accident, it was just a normal Friday night for us,” Adrianna told Need To Know.
“We were preparing to spend the weekend with my boyfriend, who is his stepdad.
“We were coming back from picking up takeout when we were hit by an alleged drunk driver.
“I’ll never forget how helpless I was when I saw my baby unconscious and I couldn’t move to get to him.
“He was dead for 10 minutes at the crash site before they were able to resuscitate him and an additional three minutes in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.
“The last time I saw him before going to the hospital myself was when he was in the middle of the road with a first responder providing CPR to keep him alive.
“I will forever be grateful that she helped save his life that night.”
The crash happened on Friday (20 Feb) as Adrianna and Mark were heading home after collecting food.
It occurred near Gholson Road and Hicks Drive in Waco, Texas, US, and involved three vehicles.
Adrianna also suffered serious injuries.
She said: “We were told by the doctors that the type of injuries he sustained meant he had a less than 1% chance of surviving, let alone recovering.
“But he survived and when he did, they told us he would essentially remain in a vegetative state and that there was little chance of recovery.
“But then he woke up 12 days later and he is alert and is able to communicate with us.
“He is slowly beating the odds little by little and has not given up on getting better.
“He is a fighter.”
Mark has recently been released from hospital but requires round-the-clock care at home.
Adrianna is currently his main carer and says she is unable to return to work because she must remain by his side.
The mum is also caring for her baby, who was five months old at the time of the crash.
She added: “Me and his father, along with his support system, are trying to give him the best fighting chance he has to get better.
“It has been a difficult transition coming home and we don’t have nursing care coverage at the moment.
“The type of care my son needs is 24/7 around-the-clock care and I am the main caretaker for my son.
“This leaves me unable to work because I must remain at his side.”
A GoFundMe has now been launched to help the family pay for medical supplies, food and daily essentials.
The appeal says they are struggling to afford items including nappies, cleaning products and bedding as funds run low.
A woman has since been charged in connection with the crash.
Anissa Cantrell Bell, 45, was arrested and charged with one first-degree felony count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and two second-degree felony counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
She was later released from McLennan County Jail on personal recognisance bonds totalling $100,000 (£74,000).
Arrest documents allege Bell had a blood-alcohol level of 0.22% around 50 minutes after the crash.
Police allege she had been speeding and driving recklessly before attempting to pass two vehicles in a no-passing zone.
Investigators allege her vehicle then collided head-on with another car, causing it to hit a third vehicle.
The case remains ongoing.
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