North Melbourne machete attack: Boy undergoes surgery to save his hand after being ambushed by gang during late-night confrontation
A teenager spent more than 18 hours in surgery trying to save his hand after being ambushed in a terrifying machete attack outside his home, as his mother gave a harrowing update.
Shocked neighbors rushed to his aid after the boy, 14, was found bleeding on the ground outside his block of flats following an altercation with a group of men on Sutton Street in North Melbourne on Friday evening.
His alleged attackers are still on the run.
His mother was minutes away from home when she received a call saying he had been attacked.
Her hand was almost detached when she found her son in the ambulance a short time later.
A mother (pictured) remembers the moment she received a call from her 14-year-old son informing her that he had just been attacked with a machete.
“I saw him sitting in the ambulance and (his hand) was almost detached from his arm,” the woman said. told 7News:
“There was blood everywhere.”
The boy was rushed to the Royal Melbourne Children’s Hospital to undergo emergency surgery.
We don’t yet know if doctors will be able to save his hand or if the damage is too catastrophic to repair.
Doctors told the boy and his mother that although his hand could be saved, he still had a long road to recovery.
“I couldn’t imagine what he would feel when he woke up,” his mother told reporters.
“He’s going to have to adapt to all these new ways of doing things that he used to do so easily, something as innocent as playing a Playstation.”
Her son was due to start a new school on Monday, which will have to be postponed while he recovers in hospital.
On Saturday, forensic investigators and SES teams scoured the public housing area looking for clues.
It is understood the boy was with a friend when they allegedly had a disagreement with another group of men, one of whom pulled out a machete and attacked him before the group fled.
His mother pleaded for calm.
“He called me and he said, ‘Mom, I’m down in an ambulance and my hand’s cut off,'” she recalled.
“I feel numb in my heart… If he is not a separate part of me, he is a part of me.”
“Now he’s in the hospital, for what?” For some kids who thought they were cool for a second, who thought they were part of a gang.
“No one deserves this.”
“Which child carries a machete? I wouldn’t even know where to find one.
Entrance to North Melbourne unit complex remained cordoned off on Saturday
Forensic experts spent Saturday searching outside the social housing block for clues with the help of SES officers.
A trail of blood was left for several meters which traced the boy’s tracks.
The boy’s alleged attackers remain at large as detectives continue their investigations.
Anyone who witnessed the attack or has information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers.
The incident is the latest in a wave of youth crime in Victoria.
Data released in June revealed that crime committed by young people aged 10 to 14 had increased by 44.6 per cent over the previous 12 months.
A trail of blood showed the path the boy took as he sought help.
