A young Tennessee boy who was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries earlier this month after he got stuck inside an automated garage gate has died Tuesday morning, his family confirmed.
The family said 7-year-old Dedric Holt fought for his life after suffering from severe anoxic damage to his brain due to a lack of oxygen following a June 11 incident at the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency’s (MDHA) in Nashville,
The boy was reportedly playing together with his cousin near the garage gate at apartments in the area prior to the accident.
Dedric was rushed to the hospitalized in a critical condition and received treatment at the Pediatric ICU at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, where he remained in a coma until he passed away on the morning of June 30, according to his GoFundMe page.
The family said Dedric remained strong and fought a long hard fight. “He’s gone on to be with his family in Heaven & God,” the page reads.
The investigation concluded that Dedric grabbed onto the automated exit gate and it lifted him up, News Channel5 reported, citing police. As the gate rolled up, it caused the boy to get stuck in the motor shaft at the top of the gate.
At this time, there still has been no clear explanation given of how the gate could have opened. The family believes the emergency button was pushed.
“It shouldn’t be in the reach of a seven-year-old child,” the boy’s mother told the outlet.
The family had set up the GoFundMe page at the time of his hospitalization to help with medical bills and taking care of Dedric’s 9-year-old brother.
Dedric’s organs will be donated, his family announced following his death. “We want his heart to beat forever,” the page reads.
“We are donating his organs so that someone else can take their child home & healthy,” they said.
