GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla. – A 7-year-old Clay County boy, who was bitten by a venomous snake about a month ago, is now out of a wheelchair and walking again on his own.
Elijah Bustamante was picking up a rock in his backyard when he was bitten in the leg by what doctors believe was a water moccasin. He spent four days in intensive care undergoing seven rounds of antivenin treatment, and he lost his ability to walk.
“It was bad,” Elijah said.
While he was in the ICU at Wolfson Children’s Hospital, he had a feeding tube for a portion of his treatment. His mother, Sanita, was understandably worried about her son’s future.
“I was worried that it could have been fatal,” she said. “I was also worried that once the swelling was stabilized that he probably wouldn’t walk or they would have to cut into his leg and release pressure. I just didn’t want to go down that route, and I didn’t want that for him being a kid.”
Elijah’s injury was so bad that he would have to learn how to walk again.
Now, not only is he walking — he’s back to running and playing his favorite sport: basketball.
“I was shocked because he learned how to hop from the couch to the wheelchair, trying to maneuver his way around — and then I saw him getting up,” his mother recalled.
You might think Elijah would be leery of returning to his own backyard, but he’s not. His mother said the household is now mindful of keeping a watchful eye for snakes in the yard.