Boy’s bright shoes aid his underwater rescue after boat is struck by barge near Red Wing

Dr. Ashley Bjorklund, an HCMC pediatric intensive care doctor, said that “time alone does not give him a prognosis” for survival or being spared serious injury.

“We always give kids a fighting chance when we can,” said Bjorklund, who emphasized that preventive steps such as wearing a life jacket — as all four children were — and supervising children are vital to prevent life-threatening incidents on the water. “Young brains do much better and can overcome things that an older brain can’t do.”