Doctors say a 15-year-old Redfield, Kansas boy is lucky to be alive after he was rushed to an emergency room with a knife in his skull.
Dr. Koji Ebersole oversaw the surgery at the University of Kansas Hospital to remove the 10-inch blade from Eli Gregg's head.
"The tip of this sharp blade is indenting the carotid artery," Ebersole said, referring to a 3D image of the interior of Eli's head. "We thought for sure we needed to be prepared for overt bleeding into the brain as we tried to remove it."
Eli's mother, Jimmy Russell, said she saw knife jutting out from below the boy's eye, right after she heard a scream.
"It's amazing that 24 hours later, he's back," Russell said. "He's got some healing to do, but he's out of danger, for the most part."
Eli said he doesn't remember how the blade became embedded in his head.
"I was taking deep breaths," Eli remembered. "I wasn't really trying to mess with the blade. I wasn't trying to get it moved or anything. I finally get to see the rest of my family. I get to go home."
Redfield is about 90 miles south of Kansas City.