A little boy is fighting for his life in the hospital after an Orlando, Florida, Christmas drone display suddenly turned chaotic, with several of the unmanned aerial devices taking unexpected nosedives into the crowd.
Mothers Jessica Lumedge and Adriana Edgerton said their seven-year-old son, Alezander, had to undergo an emergency heart surgery after being struck by a falling drone at Lake Eola Park on Saturday evening:
Pray for my son, we went to the Drone show at Lake Eola and one of the drones hit him in his chest, he is awaiting surgery JUSTICE FOR ALEZANDER https://gofund.me/2cb70a23
Posted by Jessica Lumedge on Saturday, December 21, 2024
The holiday event was put on by the City of Orlando in partnership with Texas-based company Sky Elements Drones, WESH 2 News reported.
Video captured by event goers shows the shocking moment the festive red and green display turned sideways when some of the drones began falling from the sky, crashing into the crowd and lake below:
@carlitosadd Drone Show accident!!! #droneshow #lakeeola #accident #downtownorlando #christmasshow #trending #viral #viralvideo #cityoforlando #scary
“Everyone’s natural instinct was to duck and scatter, and before we realized it, my daughter found my son on the floor unconscious. He had blood coming out of his face,” Edgerton told the local outlet.
The concerned mom said the drone struck Alezander’s chest so hard that it damaged one of his heart valves, prompting hours of open-heart surgery on Sunday.
“The blade cut his mouth, but there’s an actual imprint of the drone on his chest,” she explained.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Orlando city officials told Click Orlando that the incident is under investigation, and Sky Elements Drones released the following statement:
Sky Elements Drones wants to extend our sincere hope for a full and speedy recovery to those impacted at our Lake Eola show in Orlando on Saturday, Dec. 21. The well-being of our audience is our utmost priority, and we regret any distress or inconvenience caused.
We are diligently working with the FAA and City of Orlando officials to determine the cause and are committed to establishing a clear picture of what transpired. Millions of people see our shows annually, and we are committed to maintaining the highest safety regulations set forth by the FAA.
Edgerton said that stronger safety precautions should have been in place for the show.
“This should not have happened, and no family should be going through this. We were trying to watch a show and have a good time,” she told WESH 2.
In her Facebook post, she said that the City of Orlando and Sky Elements Drones “really have some explaining to do.”
“They will be held accountable for what was done to my son. I pray he makes it out of this,” Edgerton wrote.
A GoFundMe for Alezander — who will remain hospitalized through Christmas — has raised over $14,000 of the family’s $50,000 goal so far.
