Our lawnmower exploded while Brett was riding it around 4:30 yesterday. He called me screaming and had already called 911. I called my cousin who lives nearby and is a nurse and she tended to him until paramedics arrived and sent the kids with her son back to her house. The paramedics determined he needed a helicopter, so they brought one in and landed it in the alfalfa field behind our house. They sedated and intubated him at the scene and brought him to Wichita .

He has second and third degree burns over 36% of his body. All of this could worsen or stay the same over the next couple of days as burns tend to continue to develop for a while. The doctor said we could probably expect 4-6 weeks here (Via Christi St. Francis), then 2-4 weeks in a rehab facility. He also said Brett would probably require 4-6 grafting surgeries on his arm, back, and chest. Thank goodness it looks like his face is mostly 2nd degree burns which should heal fairly well. I am particularly thankful that his ears, nose, lips, and eyelids are intact. They said next week will be the toughest and most critical time in his recovery as day 3-7 is when infections begin to attack. The doctor said for the first week we will just worry about survival; functioning and cosmetics come later.

He did pretty well last night, vitals were good. He is mostly sedated, but he can hear us sometimes and he moves his head in response.

The helicopter service does not even have a frequent flyer program.

Karody