and now?
What a Difference a Year Makes (Paul Gilbertson)
One year after miraculously surviving a car accident that left him spending 25 minutes submerged underwater in an SUV, Royce Rivera IV has managed to make a remarkable full recovery.
On October 19th 2014, Royce’s mom, Jessica Delcourt, accidently began to doze off behind the wheel of her SUV. After hitting a guardrail and crashing into the water, she was able to get her 1-year-old daughter Natalea out of the vehicle. However, she was not able to rescue Royce, 2 at the time, before the SUV sank into the water.
In order to rescue Royce, first responders hooked a cable to the vehicle and pulled it out of the water far enough that responders could break a window and pull him out of his seat.
The medics and Firstlight Health System’s Emergency Department staff were able to then restore Royce’s vitals and stabilize him before transferring him to Children’s Hospital for further treatment. Royce then spent the first three days after the accident in a medically induced coma. His first step towards recovery occurred on the fourth day when he was taken off of medication and allowed to wake up.
The family was warned that they couldn’t predict what state Royce would be in and that he might not remember anyone. He then surprised everyone by immediately spotting Jessica upon waking and saying ‘mom’.
Royce would spend six more days at Children’s hospital and continue to amaze medical staff with his speedy recovery. Jessica explains, “Every time we had a nurse rotation the new nurse would come in, see Royce sitting up, and walk back out to check their charts because they thought there was no way he could be recovering so quickly.”
In the days and weeks that would follow, Royce would be closely monitored to make sure his recovery was going smoothly. Initially, the main concern was making sure he was holding his food down. After that checked out, Royce then spent time in physical therapy and speech therapy to make sure he didn’t suffer any lasting effects of the accident. Twelve weeks later he completed his therapy and was told his development was exactly where it should be.
Seemingly the only lingering effect from the ordeal is Royce’s apprehension to the dark. After getting home from the hospital, Royce would become very anxious if it got dark, and he currently sleeps with a night-light. However, Jessica reports that he is slowly getting over the need for that as well. Amazingly, the accident has had no impact on Royce’s feelings towards the water and he still swims just like he did prior to the accident.
Jessica says that she owes her life to all of the medical professionals who helped save her son. She is especially appreciative of those who immediately helped Royce after the accident. Jessica said, “His real angels are the first responders and the people who saw us right away at FirstLight – without them doing their jobs so well and perfectly it’s not only the reason he is alive, but the reason he recovered so well, has no breathing tubes and is back to being himself.”
After the accident, Royce was supported not only by a benefit, but also by people wearing shirts with the Batman logo (his favorite superhero) with the words ‘Little Royce is my hero’. Fittingly enough, Royce will be dressing up as Batman for Halloween this year with his two sisters going as Batgirl and Catwoman.
From an uncertain outlook a year ago to dressing up like a normal 3-year-old for Halloween, it’s been an astounding recovery for a miraculously healthy boy.
Special thanks to Paul Gilbertson for writing this follow-up story. This will be posted on our website and sent in as a press release to the local papers.
