Brenten Comeagain: 3yo miracle boy’s remarkable recovery after being struck, dragged by car in Geraldton

A Geraldton boy who was run over and dragged under a car four months ago is continuing his miraculous recovery, astounding both his family and doctors. Three-year-old Brenten Comeagain’s parents Klarissa Narkle and Brenten Comeagain Sr initially feared the worst given the extent of their little boy’s horrific life-threatening injuries — that he wouldn’t pull through or, if he did, he might not be able to walk again or would be in hospital for a year. But Brenten, or Bubba BC as he’s affectionately called, has been discharged from the Patient Assisted Travel Scheme weeks before his fourth birthday and is now back home. He still needs to have metal implants in his head removed and surgery for minor injuries but his parents say he has avoided permanent disability and is now taking the final steps towards a complete recovery. Brenten was playing with his cousins on the front lawn of a Karloo home on March 14 when he was struck by a car and dragged 100m along the road. His injuries included severe burns caused by the car’s exhaust pipe, a fractured skull in three places, a fractured foot, broken leg and injuries to his face and pelvis. Four months later, Brenten is riding his bike and scooter again, climbing equipment at the park, and spending time with his cousins. “Thank you everyone that came forward to put their statements in — I haven’t really thanked them yet,” Ms Narkle said. “He’s speeding through recovery. “We were told he might be in hospital for a year and they thought he wouldn’t be able to walk again, but he got out four months later. Everything he’s been through, he’s recovered fast. “He’s a strong boy.” The family travel back and forth fortnightly for regular MRI scans and check-ups in Perth. Ms Narkle said her son was due to have the metal plate in his head and screws in his hip and leg removed in the next six months and he still required non-urgent surgery to remove gravel from his cheek, but life was returning to normal after such a harrowing ordeal. “The forehead, he had a big deep gash so they did a skin graft there and a skin graft on his knee ‘cause it was very deep,” she said. Brenten had a wound vacuum attached to his head to assist the healing process by removing fluid and bacteria and to reduce swelling, and was put on antibiotics to avoid an infection spreading to his brain. “They had to make sure there would be no infection because it was just his skull there. There was no tissue, so they had to rebuild new tissue for him to get a skin graft,” Ms Narkle said. “They put this foam on so his tissue could overgrow it and then we waited about maybe three weeks for that foam to work and then he went into surgery for a skin graft.” Ms Narkle said she still struggled to cope with the flashbacks of seeing Brenten’s wounds in Perth Children’s Hospital when she bathed him. “When we got to Perth we saw everything . . . I couldn’t stay in the room. I just went in there, kissed him and then walked out,” she said. “The first two weeks when he was in the coma, we couldn’t even eat or sleep. That’s why we had both of our parents there.” Brenten will turn four on August 4 and starts school next year. Ms Narkle said Brenten wanted a bouncy castle at his birthday party but would not be able to while he had his metal implants. Ms Narkle said Brenten wanted to play basketball when he was older, like his uncle Johny Narkle, who is a star player for the Geraldton Buccaneers. He even got to run out with him during the Buccs’ home game on July 15 for the NBL1 First Nations Round. In March, Geraldton police alleged a 46-year-old driver of a white Hyundai I30 entered the cul-de-sac of Aaron Close and struck and dragged the boy, who was sitting on a verge. At the time, police said there was no indication of any deliberate actions or motive. The police investigation is ongoing and no charges have been laid.