Brooklyn Third Grader Suffers Skull Fracture In Gym Class

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN — A week after their 8-year-old son was rushed into emergency brain surgery for an injury from gym class, the Gao family hasn't learned much about what happened that day in the Williamsburg school, their attorney said on Sunday.

Roger Gao, a third grader at P.S. 250, was rushed to Maimonides Hospital on Jan. 7 after an incident in gym class left him with a skull fracture on the right side of his head. He underwent emergency surgery for a subdural hematoma, or build up of blood the surface of the brain caused by the traumatic injury, and is now in stable condition.

But, his family is left wondering how exactly an injury this severe was allowed to happen in the public school. Family members and attorney John Elefterakis joined Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams at Brooklyn Borough Hall on Sunday for a press conference to demand an investigation into the incident.

"Now the family is looking for answers,"Elefterakis said. "The severity of the injury is alarming and it speaks to something being wrong with the supervision in that gym class. If there was proper supervision, these questions should be very simple to answer."

Elefterakis said the Gao family has spoken with teachers from the school, but haven't been given details about how or where the injury occurred. Roger has suffered some memory loss from the trauma and hasn't been able to say what happened either, he added.

The law firm will conduct its own investigation and asks that the Department of Education do the same, Elefterakis said.

When asked for comment, a spokesperson for the Department of Education said any allegation of misconduct will be looked into.

“Safety always comes first, and EMS swiftly responded to the school," spokesperson Miranda Barbot said in an email. "We will investigate any allegation of misconduct, and ensure we continue providing support to the family.”

Adams said he was outraged when he first learned of the injury and doubts, because of its severity, that it was a simple "trip and fall." The investigation will help ensure something like this doesn't happen again to children in Brooklyn schools, he said.

"When you turn over your child to the Department of Education, you are expecting that they receive the necessary oversight, protection and ensure they come home (safe)," he said. "I have fallen in gym before, other students have fallen in gym before...but to have a skull fracture of this magnitude, it was not a trip and fall."

The borough president added that the incident reflects a lack of recreational resources and facilities in Brooklyn schools that he found through an analysis earlier this year.

The "alarming" survey results showed that many schools don't have enough physical education instructors and use "make-shift" gyms instead of designated recreational areas, which means many gym spaces were dangerous for children, Adams said.

The family will wait for the investigation results before it decides whether a lawsuit or request for help with medical bills is necessary, Elefterakis said.

Right now, the firm is asking any parents with children in Roger's gym class to come forward in case their children might have information about what happened.

"(We) are deeply upset about what happened," Guo Quan Gao, Roger's father, said through an interpreter. "Everyday when (I) see (my) kid in such an injured condition, (I) feel very concerned."

Photo provided by BP Eric Adams Youtube page.