A 6-year-old girl from New Jersey died after succumbing to a severe badminton racket injury during a family vacation in Maine.
The 6-year-old girl, Lucy Morgan, is the daughter of a well-known pastor named Jesse Morgan. The untimely demise of the child was due to a freak accident involving a badminton racket that led her to be in the hospital, battling for her life for four days before death.
Badminton Injury Shatters Idyllic Family Vacation
The Morgan family, consisting of two adults and four kids, was in Limerick, Maine, when the tragedy happened. The family was enjoying their last full day on their rental cottage property.
According to Jesse Morgan, Lucy's father and a pastor at Green Pond Bible Chapel in Rockaway, the family was having lunch by the lake while the children played badminton in the front yard.
In a tragic turn of events, the racket broke during a downward swing, and a shard from the aluminum shaft dislodged, striking Lucy in the head while she sat on the sidelines.
Maine State Police reported that the "unintentional injury" was caused by Lucy's 10-year-old brother.
The sharp piece of the racket penetrated Lucy's skull, causing catastrophic damage. Despite being unresponsive, Lucy was still breathing when emergency services arrived and rushed her to a local hospital. She was then airlifted to Maine Medical Center in Portland for urgent medical intervention.
Surgeons Fight to Save Lucy's Life
At the hospital, surgeons performed an emergency procedure to relieve the pressure on Lucy's brain by removing part of her skull. Although they managed to revive her after she flatlined on the operating table, Lucy had lost all brain function and could not breathe independently.
Doctors informed the family that her chances of recovery were slim due to the severity of the injury, which had caused significant arterial bleeding and brain damage.
Jesse Morgan detailed the harrowing experience in a blog entry titled "Calamity Strikes," describing the anguish of holding his injured daughter and praying for a miracle.
Despite the medical team's best efforts, Lucy's condition continued to deteriorate, and by Wednesday, it was clear that she would not recover.
Family and Community Mourn Lucy's Loss
Lucy Morgan succumbed to her injuries at around 4 a.m. on Wednesday, just one day after doctors predicted she would pass away. The drive back to their New Jersey home was filled with sorrow for the Morgan family, who grappled with the profound loss.
Jesse Morgan expressed the family's grief in his blog, sharing the emotional toll on Lucy's siblings, Silas, 10, Shiloh, 8, and Atticus, 4, who struggled to comprehend the tragedy and felt a deep sense of guilt.
The Morgan family received an overwhelming outpouring of support from relatives, church leaders, congregants, and even strangers who read Jesse's blog.
Gifts of food, flowers, and heartfelt messages of sympathy helped the family cope during this dark time. Jesse Morgan found solace in the community's kindness and saw it as a testament to God's grace amid their suffering.
Lucy's funeral is scheduled for June 15 at Green Pond Bible Chapel, where the family hopes to celebrate her life and find comfort in their faith. Jesse Morgan emphasized his desire for Lucy's story to inspire hope, even in the face of such devastating loss.
