NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) – The family of a 12-year-old Kenner boy are thinking about his life and legacy as they prepare to leave Children’s Hospital without him.
Adrien Flores was critically injured when an ice cream truck slammed into his family’s apartment Saturday.
Adrien’s uncles say his parents lost everything in an instant—the Kenner apartment they once lived in and their son.
Relatives waited at the hospital Thursday as medical personnel worked on confirming the worst.
“The only hope we have is he’s going to become an organ donor because his brain is so swollen that no matter what the doctors do or what kind of treatment they give him, his brain is not going to make it,” Adrien’s uncle Joel Orellana said.
The family says Adrien was playing video games when the high-speed crash happened, forcing him under the wreckage.
“Actually, my family and I were in Florida when we received the call, and we drove five hours to get here because we didn’t know the magnitude of the accident,” Orellana explained. “Once we saw it, we couldn’t believe it. We were in shock.”
Now that the shock has somewhat subsided, the family prepares for something else.
“It’s different now,” Luis Maradiaga, one of Adrien’s other uncles, said. “We know he’s covered in the blood of Christ, and he’s in heaven. He’s in an amazing place right now.”
In the wake of the incident, the family is receiving support from Children’s Hospital, the City of Kenner and even strangers.
“We just want to say ‘thank you’ to all the donors, and this family really needs it because they lost everything overnight, including the life of their child,” Orellana said.
The driver of the ice cream truck, 71-year-old Mechael Yousef Mansoor, was arrested by Kenner police for negligent injuring and reckless operations; however, those charges could be upgraded as the investigation continues.
Mayor Michael Glaser says they are working on hosting a blood drive on behalf of Adrien next week. We will report those details as soon as they become available.
On Friday, Children’s Hospital will raise a flag in honor of Adrien at 10 a.m.
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