Local teen sacrifices his hand for brother in fireworks blast
by Joe Conger / KENS 5
Bio
| Email
kens5.com
Posted on July 6, 2010 at 3:00 PM
Updated
Wednesday, Jul 7 at 4:59 AM
A Pipe Creek teen is injured saving his little brother. The Bandera high school senior is recovering tonight, as doctors were able to save most of his hand after a fireworks explosion. The family says he sacrificed it to protect his brother.
“I can feel my pinky finger. I can kind of feel this finger. But this one, I just feel pressure,” said Gatlin Magee, after his third surgery.
Despite now missing a finger, the 17-year old says it was a split-second decision he’ll never regret.
Magee’s story is a fireworks tragedy with a twist. Gatlin says the wind blew over a lit mortar tube late Saturday night. The high-altitude firework suddenly ended up on its side, targeting the crowd of kids and aimed specifically at his baby brother, Chisom.
Gatlin said, “So I stepped in front of him. And when I did that it was coming at my face. So, I swatted down at it. And last thing I remember before seeing white and red heard a big bang; I felt the mortar in my hand.”
His father, Jon Magee said, “Looks like something somebody coming in from Iraq with, a blown-up hand.”
Gatlin’s a right-hander and an avid outdoorsman, now missing a trigger-finger. Doctors tell the family the tissue damage is extensive.
But his father says there’s also a 10-year old brother, Chisom, who will survive to see another Fourth of July…and who has a real hero in an older brother to celebrate.
“He knows what Gatlin did for him. That’s all he can think about is Gatlin,” said Magee.
Mother Alisa Magee adds, “He’s his brother’s angel at this point.”
