A Minnesota couple said their family experienced a “miracle” after their son survived a terrifying freak accident
Parents Dave and Abby Deterding said an arrow traveled almost all the way through their son Gus’ skull when he fell on it — and the 9-year-old pulled it out by himself
A doctor told the Deterdings that if the arrow had struck Gus at just a slightly different angle, “that would have been death within minutes”
A Minnesota couple says their family experienced a “miracle” after their 9-year-old son pulled an arrow out of his face — and escaped unharmed.
Speaking with local outlet KARE 11, parents Dave and Abby Deterding recalled the moment back in March when their son, Gus, came to them panicking and bleeding after he fell and slipped in their icy driveway while trying to pack some items in their truck — including a youth bow and arrow.
“He was carrying everything at once,” Abby recalled, “And he fell right on it. I was vacuuming downstairs, and Dave was getting dressed, and [Gus] came in, in a panic.”
“He had a very small cut on his head,” Dave told the outlet, as Abby remembered that Gus had “a lot of blood” on his face.
According to the Deterdings, they didn’t realize the extent of their son’s injuries in that moment, and instead tried to ease his concerns about what had happened.
“He kept saying. ‘Mom, am I dying, am I going to leave you? I don’t want to leave you yet,’ ” Abby told KARE 11. “And I’m like, ‘Gus, no, we’re just getting stitches.’ ”
While the couple initially took their son to Alexandria hospital, a concerned emergency room doctor called for Gus to be transported to the larger Children’s Minnesota Hospital, according to KARE 11.
The 9-year-old was initially sent home from the hospital without incident, but it wasn’t until Gus started vomiting and the Deterdings brought him back for a second time that doctors realized something incredible had happened.
Dr. Ken Maslonka told the outlet that the arrow had traveled nearly all the way through Gus’ brain, and the 9-year-old pulled it back out himself.
“He looked too normal,” Maslonka said. “I would say in the 28 years I’ve been at Children’s of Minnesota, I’ve never seen anything like this.
Doctors moved quickly to take scans of Gus’ brain, and they found that a small piece of his skull had been pushed into his brain by the impact of the arrow, which the Deterdings believe Gus was carrying tucked under his armpit, pointing up toward his head, when he fell.
“It literally took my breath away and I felt, like, sick to my stomach,” Abby said, recalling the first moment she saw her son’s brain scan. “I couldn’t believe it, ‘No, that far, what?’ ”
“Had it hit that, that would have been death within minutes,” Maslonka said, referring to a carotid artery, extremely close to where the arrow had been in Gus’ brain.
According to Maslonka, the arrow been just two centimeters away from exiting Gus’ skull. But three months later, Gus is back to his usual self, playing hockey with his siblings and going back to baseball practice with the rest of his team.
“He is as normal as he was beforehand,” the doctor said. “It’s either fortune, at a minimum, or it’s heavenly presence of God controlling the direction of that arrow.”
As for the Deterdings, they shared that Gus hasn’t wanted to speak about the incident at length yet. “We’ve never really pressed him on talking about it, but maybe someday,” his father told KARE 11.
The 9-year-old’s parents now have just one explanation for what happened that day in March.
“We know it didn’t just happen,” Dave acknowledged.
“It’s a miracle,” both parents told the outlet, with Abby adding: “We’re just thankful, so grateful.”