A Minnesota couple said their family experienced a “miracle” after their son survived a terrifying freak accident
Parents Dave and Abby Deterding said an arrow traveled almost all the way through their son Gus’ skull when he fell on it — and the 9-year-old pulled it out by himself
A doctor told the Deterdings that if the arrow had struck Gus at just a slightly different angle, “that would have been death within minutes”
A Minnesota couple says their family experienced a “miracle” after their 9-year-old son pulled an arrow out of his face — and escaped unharmed.

Speaking with local outlet KARE 11, parents Dave and Abby Deterding recalled the moment back in March when their son, Gus, came to them panicking and bleeding after he fell and slipped in their icy driveway while trying to pack some items in their truck — including a youth bow and arrow.

He was carrying everything at once,” Abby recalled, “And he fell right on it. I was vacuuming downstairs, and Dave was getting dressed, and [Gus] came in, in a panic.”

“He had a very small cut on his head,” Dave told the outlet, as Abby remembered that Gus had “a lot of blood” on his face.

According to the Deterdings, they didn’t realize the extent of their son’s injuries in that moment, and instead tried to ease his concerns about what had happened.

“He kept saying. ‘Mom, am I dying, am I going to leave you? I don’t want to leave you yet,’ ” Abby told KARE 11. “And I’m like, ‘Gus, no, we’re just getting stitches.’ ”

While the couple initially took their son to Alexandria hospital, a concerned emergency room doctor called for Gus to be transported to the larger Children’s Minnesota Hospital, according to KARE 11.

The 9-year-old was initially sent home from the hospital without incident, but it wasn’t until Gus started vomiting and the Deterdings brought him back for a second time that doctors realized something incredible had happened.

Dr. Ken Maslonka told the outlet that the arrow had traveled nearly all the way through Gus’ brain, and the 9-year-old pulled it back out himself.

“He looked too normal,” Maslonka said. “I would say in the 28 years I’ve been at Children’s of Minnesota, I’ve never seen anything like this