Offer gratitude and warnings after grandson’s accident at crosswalk

Thursday evening, July 13, our 11-year-old grandson, Gage, was hit by a car while crossing the street at a crosswalk on Granville Street in Summerside. The traffic had stopped in one direction to let him cross the street, while the vehicle going the other direction stopped only too late.

A witness immediately called 911. City police and Island EMS arrived within minutes and he was transported to Prince County Hospital.

The medical staff in Emergency determined that he had severe trauma to his head and also had several fractured and dislocated bones through his body. Dr. Scott Cameron’s quick decision to have him transported by air (Air Vac) rather than by ambulance to IWK in Halifax surely contributed to saving his life. Dr. Walling, the surgeon at IWK told us afterward that if he had been transported by ambulance, he probably wouldn’t be with us today.

Time was of the essence because a severe blood clot had formed in his head, which had to be removed quickly. He needed 54 stitches to close the wound. His other injuries, fracture and dislocations, were repaired and will heal with time. He spent eight days in IWK and is now recovering at home.

This tragedy was very difficult and heart wrenching, as you can imagine, for the parents –Elise Arsenault and Tim Bowness – and family members when we heard the news of the accident.

We are grateful he will be OK with time. We are definitely grateful to many individuals: the witness who called 911, to Emily Schurman who recognized Gage and advised his parents, to the two police officers who arrived on scene and also spent time with the family at PCH, Island EMS, to Dr. Cameron, supervisor Shelley and nurses on duty in Emergency that evening. Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to his wellbeing.

We can’t say enough also to the IWK. Dr. Walling and his team of doctors and nurses were so incredible.

We are truly blessed to have such wonderful staff and facilities at both PCH and IWK. We would encourage everyone to support them and other hospitals whenever possible because we don’t know when their services will be required to save a life.

We would like to acknowledge Gage’s parents’ place of work – staff at Kelly’s Flower Shop and Island Coastal – for giving them support and the time they needed to deal with their son’s tragic event. We would like to say thank you to all the other individuals who helped and provided support throughout this ordeal.

As a final note, we would like to advise drivers to always beware of walkers at crosswalks. It only takes a split second of inattention to cause an accident as described above.

It could have taken this child’s life.

Louis and Janet Arsenault Grandparents Summerside, P.E.I.