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9-Year-Old Boy Loses Eye After Being Shot By Nerf Gun, Years After Being Shot By Toy Arrow

A freak accident with a toy gun left a boy without his left eye. Now the family is raising money for a prosthetic.

A Freak Accident

GoFundMe

When Taylor-Jay Ravicini of South Wales was just three years-old, he was struck in the eye by a toy arrow from a Nerf gun. The accident left him blind in his left eye, but doctors worked hard to make sure he could keep the eye.

Lightning Strikes Twice

Six years later, at age 9, Taylor-Jay was struck again in the same eye by a Nerf projectile. This time, the damage left doctors with no choice but to remove the eye. His mom described what happened:

"I was downstairs, and I heard a devastating scream and my heart sunk, I couldn't even go to see him, I sent my partner as I knew something had happened."

Pressure Builds

After being stuck the second time, his eye began to fill with blood and pressure built up in the eye. The family went to the hospital, where doctors tried repeatedly to alleviate the pressure, but it kept coming back. ""Taylor's eye was full of blood and it was causing a build-up of pressure," his mom said.

Removing the Eye

Unsplash | Daan Stevens

Finally, it was decided that the eye needed to be removed. A specialist told the family that there is a condition that would start to eat away at the good protein in his right eye when it was unable to find any in his left. This could eventually cause him to go blind in both eyes.

Constant Worry

Unsplash | Asdrubal luna

Taylor-Jay's mom says after the two freak accidents, she is constantly worried about her son and what could happen to him next:

"I am constantly worrying for him and what will happen next, it has just been one big emotional rollercoaster."

It's hard to imagine any parent feeling differently after what they've been through.

Raising Money

Now the family is trying to raise money to help Taylor-Jay get a prosthetic eye. The family set up a GoFundMe page to raise 2,500 Euros. His mom says people stare at him in public and kids at school mock him:

"Wherever we go people are staring at him and whispering about his eye. In school he is constantly bullied, and people call him, 'Popeye', that really hurts, why should he be treated different?

Visit the page here to contribute.

Goal Reached

After just 19 days on GoFundMe, the family hit its goal of 2,500 Euros. Currently, they have raised 2,508 Euros. A total of 90 people have donated with one anonymous person giving 760 Euros to the campaign.

Outpouring of Support

GoFundMe

The GoFundMe page is filled with positive messages and support for Taylor-Jay. It seems his story has struck a chord with many people.

These Toys Are Dangerous

Flickr | gav tatu

Taylor-Jay and his family aren't alone i experiencing an eye injury due to Nerf guns. There was a major study of injuries cause by these toys, and it concluded:

Airsoft guns can cause a variety of serious injuries, sometimes necessitating operative intervention. The long-term morbidity from some of these injuries is significant. Airsoft guns are capable of inflicting serious and permanent ocular damage.

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