Martinez Boy Injured In Boston Marathon Bombings Undergoes More Surgery
BOSTON, Mass. (KPIX/AP/BCN) -- An 11-year-old Bay Area boy remains in critical but stable condition in an intensive care unit at Boston Children's Hospital, two days after twin bombings at the Boston Marathon killed three people and injured more than 170.
The hospital said on Wednesday that Aaron Hern of Martinez has undergone multiple surgeries, including three to four hours of surgery on Wednesday to further treat his badly injured leg, including removing more shrapnel and damaged tissue.
The boy was on the sidelines near the finish line to watch his mother run the race on Monday afternoon when the bombs exploded, hitting him with shrapnel.
His mother, Katherine, wrote in an e-mail to KPIX 5 on Wednesday that "doctors are optimistic" about Aaron's progress. His 12th birthday is May 1.
But she added, "He is up and down with fevers so we're worried about infection. There's an entire team of infectious disease specialists on it though. There's an entire team of every kind of specialist on him. This really is the best place in the world he could be right now."
Her e-mail continued: "Aaron is trying harder and harder each time to communicate when he wakes up. Its all through touch-pad and it's sometimes legible and sometimes not. But it's stressful because he's starting to remember everything and is getting upset..."
Meantime, community members back in Martinez are rallying around the injured sixth-grader.
RELATED LINK: List Of Fundraisers To Benefit Aaron Hern
Roxanne Cole, the owner of restaurant and wine bar Roxx on Main, welcomed diners to the business for a fundraiser for the family during the lunch and dinner hours on Tuesday.
Employees at the restaurant, located at 627 Main St., worked for free on Tuesday, and other local businesses, including Chairs for Affairs, donated supplies, Cole said.
"If you know anything about Martinez, we're a very tight-knit community, and I wanted to do something to help," she said, noting that the event netted $4,500 - with all proceeds going to help cover the family's transportation and housing expenses in Boston.
Cole said she would continue to hold the same fundraiser each Tuesday until the Hern family returns home. Community members may also drop off donations at the restaurant until a donation fund is established, she said.
The public will have more chances to dine and donate to the Herns at a fundraiser at Mountain Mike's Pizza at 1160 Arnold Drive in Martinez Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. each day.
Sunday through Wednesday, customers at Kinder's Meats and BBQ throughout Contra Costa County can donate 15 percent of each purchase to the Hern family.
At Martinez Junior High School, where Aaron is a student, classes are working on projects to show their support for their injured classmate and his family, Principal Helen Rossi said.
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