MUMBAI: An 11-year-old boy lost his left eye after a firecracker injury caused a corneal tear. At JJ Hospital in Byculla, where Sai Bharankar is undergoing treatment, this is the second severe firecracker injury to be treated this week. A 10-year-old boy had suffered internal bleeding in the eye.
Bharankar was watching friends light crackers at Dhangar Wadi’s Gilbert Hill Road in Andheri (W) late on Monday. The child also suffered severe injuries on his nose, for which he needed six stitches.
Doctors from ophthalmology department of JJ Hospital said the boy came around 7.30pm on Monday with complaints of pain, bleeding and loss of vision in the left eye. On examination, they found there was a huge corneal tear and complete rupture of the globe. “The prognosis at this point is very bad. The explosion tore the cornea and distorted the globe. Chances of salvaging the eye are extremely poor,” said Dr Ragini Parekh, head of opthalmology, JJ. Doctors sutured the tear and are trying to prevent infection or damage to the other eye.
Bharankar had stepped out of his house with friends after dinner to light crackers around 9pm. D N Nagar police have not yet registered a case as they are waiting for the boy to recover to record his statement.
Bharankar’s mother Komal told police, “He was standing in a corner of the road and his friends were lighting crackers when a spark hit his eye. Some people took him to Cooper Hospital, from where he was taken to JJ,” she said.
Dr T P Lahane, eye surgeon and former medical education director, said eye injuries usually see a surge during Diwali. “Children should not be allowed to light crackers without adult supervision,” he said.
