Mother hopes for full recovery of son, 7, after struck by canter

Two Fridays ago, on October 3, seven-year-old Tiequan Scarville’s life changed drastically when he was struck down by a canter along the Kilcoy, Chesney, Corentyne Berbice Public Road.

The young lad from Fyrish Village suffered a severe brain injury and had to undergo emergency surgery. Now, he is on a long road to recovery, according to his mother, Towanna Yorrick.

“Because of the frontal lobe that was completely damaged, [doctors] said there is a possibility that all of that [memory loss and behavioural changes] is related to the frontal lobe being damaged,” Yorrick told the News Room.

Yorrick, a nurse, explained that school was out on October 3 as a result of Teachers’ Day and, so Tiequan accompanied his grandparents to work.

On his way back home, he was standing at the corner of the road with his grandfather when a canter struck him down.

The young child was rushed to the Port Mourant Hospital and subsequently to the New Amsterdam Hospital.

Tiequan was later rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) in a critical condition where he underwent emergency brain surgery.

His mother said doctors had to remove over fifteen bone fragments from his skull. She explained that the affected bone had shattered completely and was pressing against his brain, forcing surgeons to remove the entire section to relieve the pressure.

Tiequan was placed on a ventilator in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for three days before being moved to the Pediatric High Dependency Unit. After being hospitalized for six days, he was discharged from the hospital.

Yorrick said she remains hopeful her son could make a full recovery, but she is also concerned about future challenges he could experience.

“Currently, I am depressed because my child was a perfectly fine seven-year-old, going to school, doing his school work and I am out of work as of right now. I don’t know how many days I am covered when it comes to sick leave,” the mother stressed.

Following the accident, the driver of the canter was arrested and released after 72 hours.

“The police say that he is reporting every day to the station, but I am not aware of this. I have never seen him since the incident. I don’t know what he looks like,” Yorrick explained.

She further claimed that it has been two weeks since the accident occurred and the scene has not yet been marked. Yorrick said she is concerned about the lack of progress in the police investigation and revealed that the medical report has also not been uplifted.

“I just want the matter to be dealt with accordingly and the person responsible to be held accountable,” she said.

When contacted, Regional Commander Shivpersaud Bacchus told the News Room that the investigation was completed and the file was sent to the Director of Public Prosecution for legal advice.