SAN ANTONIO — A 16-year-old from New Braunfels is fighting a tough battle in a New Orleans ICU.
He was on vacation July 7 in the city's French Quarter when an oak tree fell and crushed him.
Witnesses tell KENS 5 it's a miracle the boy is alive.
The family's attorney, Morris Bart, told our sister station WWL-TV they're asking for privacy and prayers.
Wednesday, Bart announced he's helping the family pursue legal action against the city of New Orleans, saying an area should have been roped off around that tree after a smaller limb snapped off 10 days prior.
"We were there for a Paramour concert," said Brett Cochran of Biloxi, MS, who traveled to the Big Easy June 6.
The following day, as Cochran walked by Jackson Square in the French Quarter, he heard a loud noise that sent people running.
"We heard a big boom," he recalled. "We thought it was a car crash. We saw the tree fall."
A 16-year-old from New Braunfels who was visiting New Orleans with his family got trapped under a large oak tree.
Cochran ran to help.
"There were some people yelling. I thought if someone was trapped, I was going to help lift the tree up," said Cochran.
He said two off-duty first responders were already at work doing compressions to keep the boy stable.
"They kind of had it taken care of, but they asked for shirts. So I gave them my shirt," said Cochran. "They were using it to stop the bleeding. There was quite a lot of bleeding."
He recalls people watching from a distance, praying for the teenager and his family.
"I don't know if it would be appropriate to describe how [the boy] looked," Cochran added. "I had doubts whether he would make it...but I was very happy to hear that he was indeed alive."
Bart says the boy has a severe brain injury and is still in the ICU as of Wednesday afternoon. He says their lawsuit against the city could be filed as early as next week.
"The fact that they didn't rope off that tree, didn't put out any yellow tape, I believe is unconscionable," said Bart. "From a legal standard, in my opinion, that is gross negligence."
Mayor of New Orleans, LaToya Cantrell, said the city did a thorough inspection of the oak tree after the first limb fell in June and found there was no threat of an imminent danger of collapsing. The city is now reviewing how they inspect their historic trees.