Site search
sponsored by
News
Sports
EATON — His grandmother calls him “Miracle Boy,” and people who hear Dominic’s story would probably agree. Last week, on May 3, Dominic Morado, 11, was target shooting with some friends near Eaton. One of the boys thought his BB gun was empty, and as they slid down a hill, he pulled the trigger. That’s when Dominic would need a miracle.
The BB hit Dominic just above the right eye, went through his skull, through his brain, and lodged near the back of the skull by the left ear.
Dominic’s friends could see he was hurt, so they walked him to his grandmother’s house, and — because he didn’t want anyone to get in trouble — told her that he fell down and hit his head.
“I really can’t remember everything after that,” Dominic said Wednesday. “I remember waking up in the hospital, but that’s all.”
There was a large lump over Dominic’s eye, so his grandmother, Paula Eaton, took her grandson to North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley. That’s where they discovered a BB had been shot through his brain. It was a regular, copper-colored BB, and the doctors could see the path the BB left as it passed through his brain.
Dominic was flown to Children’s Hospital in Denver, where the surgeons first considered leaving the BB where it was, lodged in the skull, but finally decided they had to operate.
The doctors cut a small square out of Dominic’s skull, repaired the damage to the brain, and retrieved the BB. They then used screws to reattach the square piece of skull.
“I’ve never clutched a rosary so hard in my life,” Eaton said about waiting for her grandson to regain consciousness.
When he did wake up from surgery, the first thing Dominic asked for was the BB. He wanted the souvenir. The screws will be removed later, and Dominic still has a small, round BB hole scar above his eye.
But there appears to be no long-term damage. Doctors told the family the BB didn’t hit any vital areas of the brain.
He came home from the hospital Sunday, and his family was still concerned about how he would react to the BB and surgery.
“Monday, he was climbing trees,” his grandmother said. “Looks like he’s going to be OK.”
BB guns are allowed in Eaton, and the boys were shooting up on a hill away from houses. There will be no charges filed against the boy who accidentally shot Dominic.
He said he feels fine, no pain, no dizziness, and his memory is fine now. However, he probably won’t return to his fifth-grade class at Benjamin Eaton Elementary School because school ends in a few days.
And, according to Grandma, he might not be shooting BB guns for a while.
“This should be a lesson to the kids and parents,” Eaton said. “You’ve got to be careful with all guns, even little BB guns.”
By the way, Paula Eaton has hidden all the BBs for Dominic’s gun.
The BB hit Dominic just above the right eye, went through his skull, through his brain, and lodged near the back of the skull by the left ear.
Dominic’s friends could see he was hurt, so they walked him to his grandmother’s house, and — because he didn’t want anyone to get in trouble — told her that he fell down and hit his head.
“I really can’t remember everything after that,” Dominic said Wednesday. “I remember waking up in the hospital, but that’s all.”
There was a large lump over Dominic’s eye, so his grandmother, Paula Eaton, took her grandson to North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley. That’s where they discovered a BB had been shot through his brain. It was a regular, copper-colored BB, and the doctors could see the path the BB left as it passed through his brain.
Dominic was flown to Children’s Hospital in Denver, where the surgeons first considered leaving the BB where it was, lodged in the skull, but finally decided they had to operate.
The doctors cut a small square out of Dominic’s skull, repaired the damage to the brain, and retrieved the BB. They then used screws to reattach the square piece of skull.
“I’ve never clutched a rosary so hard in my life,” Eaton said about waiting for her grandson to regain consciousness.
When he did wake up from surgery, the first thing Dominic asked for was the BB. He wanted the souvenir. The screws will be removed later, and Dominic still has a small, round BB hole scar above his eye.
But there appears to be no long-term damage. Doctors told the family the BB didn’t hit any vital areas of the brain.
He came home from the hospital Sunday, and his family was still concerned about how he would react to the BB and surgery.
“Monday, he was climbing trees,” his grandmother said. “Looks like he’s going to be OK.”
BB guns are allowed in Eaton, and the boys were shooting up on a hill away from houses. There will be no charges filed against the boy who accidentally shot Dominic.
He said he feels fine, no pain, no dizziness, and his memory is fine now. However, he probably won’t return to his fifth-grade class at Benjamin Eaton Elementary School because school ends in a few days.
And, according to Grandma, he might not be shooting BB guns for a while.
“This should be a lesson to the kids and parents,” Eaton said. “You’ve got to be careful with all guns, even little BB guns.”
By the way, Paula Eaton has hidden all the BBs for Dominic’s gun.
