Boy Survives ‘Freak’ Trampoline Accident Where Metal Coil Dislodged into His Back

A 12-year-old boy from the United Kingdom survived a freak accident where the metal coil from a trampoline dislodged and shot straight into his back.

Jamie Quinlan, 12, was at a friend’s house jumping on a trampoline Sunday when a coil from the trampoline dislodged and went straight through the boy’s shirt two inches into his back, Fox News reported.

The coil was just centimeters away from his spine.

Jamie was rushed to Sheffield Children’s Hospital, where doctors performed emergency surgery to remove the coil.

“It could have happened to anyone,” his father, Ian, 62, said. “Jamie has been so brave. I want people to be aware of how dangerous trampolines can be if there’s no cover on the springs, or if there’s a gap.”

“The spring had come off the trampoline like a bullet,” he added. “If it had hit elsewhere on Jamie’s body, in his head or throat, we could have lost him.”

Jamie said he felt a “strange and heavy” sensation when the coil struck him, adding that he sometimes feels like the piece of metal is still there.

“Sometimes it still feels like the spring is in my back, but I am getting a lot better and stronger now,” he said. “I feel relieved that it wasn’t worse.”

Thousands of trampoline-related injuries occur each year. In the U.S. alone, 94,000 children visited the emergency room for a trampoline-related injury in 2012, according to a fact sheet from the U.S. Product and Safety Commission.

The American Academy of Pediatrics notes that children under the age of six are most at risk for injuries, including concussions, broken bones, sprains, strains, and neck injuries.