A 9-year-old Temecula boy is in a coma after being electrically shocked at his own birthday party. NBC 7’s Lauren Lee reports on Oct. 7, 2014.
A 9-year-old boy is in a coma at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego after he was electrically shocked at his own birthday party in what his dad describes as a “freak accident.”
Elijah Belden's family said they were celebrating his birthday a few weeks early Saturday with family friends and his baseball team when the fourth grader was shocked near the swimming pool at their Temecula home.
Elijah was snapping a picture with a friend when the accident happened. He apparently touched a metal patio cover support that had stringing lights and had somehow become electrified. A family friend rushed to Elijah’s side to perform CPR moments after he was shocked.
“He went into the mode of ‘this is what we gotta do to save his life.' And he did,” said Elijah’s father, Eric Belden.
Elijah is now in a medically induced coma and in stable condition. His father said he will soon be taken out of the coma and doctors will assess his recovery from that point.
His family is grateful for the community support they have received, which has included cards and letters with words of encouragement.
“Our focus is putting all of our energies towards the fact that the community responded and we're putting all of our energy into Elijah's healing,” his father said. “Full recovery. We're trusting in God for full recovery.”
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Belden said the family is taking it day by day, not focusing on how the freak accident happened, but how to get Elijah well again.
“A freak accident happened. There is no explanation and that’s not something were focused on – how it happened (and) why it happened,” he said.
