Μake us preferred on Google A 14-year-old boy in Heraklion, Crete, has successfully undergone surgery to remove a sock from his stomach, bringing an end to a medical ordeal that had caused concern in the local community.
The boy underwent the operation at the University Hospital of Heraklion (PAGNI) at 9 p.m. Monday, according to an update posted on social media by his mother. The procedure lasted about an hour.
The sock was successfully removed from his stomach.
The family thanked everyone who had expressed concern, asked about the boy’s condition, mobilized to help or otherwise supported them during the ordeal.
“Everything went well,” the mother’s post said.
Attention is now turning to the boy’s recovery following the operation, according to local news outlet neakriti.gr.
Mother raises concerns over school transportation
The incident occurred while the 14-year-old was being transported to school, according to his mother’s account.
She states that the boy swallowed the sock while traveling by school vehicle from Archanes to the Special Vocational Education and Training School of Heraklion in Alikarnassos.
The mother said she had contacted the driver before the journey and explained that the boy required constant supervision because he has epilepsy and, according to her, had previously put objects in his mouth and swallowed them.
According to her account, the driver said she could carry out the transportation without a second person accompanying her.
The mother said she had tried to find a volunteer companion from the previous day but was unable to secure one.
KTEL says incident is under investigation
The Heraklion-Lasithi KTEL, the regional bus operator, said the driver involved was working as a contractor for the company, which uses outside partners to operate some routes.
Eirini Karabini, the company’s communications manager, said the circumstances of the incident were being investigated to determine exactly what happened. She added that management had nevertheless decided to immediately end its cooperation with the driver.
Karabini also said the boy’s mother had been informed the previous day that there would be no accompanying person on the particular route. Since the family had been informed of that arrangement, she said, “as you understand, the responsibility is somewhat shared.”
The KTEL representative said the company was closely following the boy’s condition and had been in contact with the director of PAGNI, who informed the company that the boy’s life was not in danger.
“We are also worried about the child and sincerely hope that he makes a speedy and full recovery,” Karabini said, according to neakriti.gr.
