At Christmas time, the Houston family bought two trees so their younger kids could have their own to decorate. When they removed the tree and taken it outside, the bucket filled with water below it was left inside the home.
On January 5th, when Lemuel was held by his siblings, he went missing for a short time. The other siblings tried to find him and after a quick search of the house, he was found unresponsive in the bucket of water.
The boy’s older brother Daniel performed CPR until the fire and police responders arrived and took over. He was then taken to Harrison Medical Center and revived. He was then transferred to Mary Bridge in a critical condition.
Lemuel never fully awakened from a coma, even though there were some signs of improvement at the hospital.
The family knows that everyone who tried to save the boy, did the best they could. A post on their family blog says:
We are so grateful for the medical care we have received beginning with the first responders at our home, the ER Staff at Harrison Medical Center, and the stellar care that we have received for the past 16 days at the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit from Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital in Tacoma. Every Physician, Nurse, Respiratory Therapist, housekeeper, and hospital staff provided us with competent and compassionate care.
The boy’s family remained with him day and night at the hospital. They posted updates with videos and pictures on social media and on the family’s blog which got thousands of views.
The boy spent his first birthday in the hospital and the family, with help from the hospital, threw him a party.
“Despite how hard the loss is, I can’t imagine not having him in our lives this past year,” Craig said.