May 8, 2009 8:07 pm US/Eastern
Families Pray For Hyperbaric Chamber Fire Victims
LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA (CBS4) ―
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Italian families gathered for a prayer service in Broward, hoping that the child that was burned in a hyperbaric chamber recovers and hoping that their loved ones get the treatment that they need.
CBS
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A woman is wheeled out on a stretcher after an explosion at a medical facility in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea
CBS
Praying for strength and hoping for miracles for young children, more than 20 families are in South Florida from Italy, filled with dreams that their children's physical handicaps will improve. This is happening in light of a recent tragedy.
Amato Michela's son Fabio has a brain injury that's left him unable to use his muscles; he has to eat through a tube and can't speak. But with the help of daily physical therapy and the hyperbaric chamber Amato says he's improving.
"Here, he start to have the speech therapy, and he's learning to eat by mouth," said Michela. "In Italy, no."
But now these families are in limbo after that deadly hyperbaric chamber explosion and fire killed a grandmother and left a 4-year-old-boy critically injured in Lauderdale-by-the–Sea last week. Now the chambers can't be used. The investigation is still going on.
Marta Malagugini is hoping her son, injured in an accident, will soon be able to get back into oxygen therapy.
"He need to go in the chamber to have the oxygen therapy in the chamber, but now it's closed and they need this," said Malagugini.
But even without the hyperbaric chamber, these families are encouraged. In Italy most would only get one to three hours a week in physical therapy; here it's daily. And as all these parents dedicate themselves to improving their children's lives, they also pray that the young boy severely burned in last week's fire will get the strength to continue his fight.
"Another son for us, all day they think about Francesco," said Luisa Matrone. "He's still in the hospital and he's fighting to survive, we pray all day for him."
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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