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Wichita family begging for a hit and run driver to come forward

February 09, 2011|By Kim Hynes | KWCH-12 Eyewitness News

(WICHITA, Kan.) — "They tell us to pray for a miracle and that's all we can do. We can use all of the prayers we can get." A Wichita family prays someone will come forward after a hit and run on a busy Missouri highway leaves a teenager in critical condition.

"I have nightmares about it," said Tammy Hurst. She can't stop thinking about what happened to her nephew Dillon McKee. "We still have Dillon but we don't have our Dillon if that makes sense," she said.Their Dillon went from a smiling 15-year-old to a hospital bed, where he's expected to spend the rest of his life. They say he's functioning at the level of an infant and doctors say he won't walk or talk again. "We're not going to give up hope, there are miracles.  It's going to take a miracle," she said.

Dillon's accident happened January 18. He and his uncle were on their way from Springfield Missouri back to Wichita when their truck broke down on Highway 44.  They didn't have a cell phone, so his uncle went to get help. He left Dillon locked in the truck on the shoulder of the highway. When the tow truck arrived, Dillon got out to get into the tow truck. That's when a white box semi drove by and something on it struck Dillon in the head. The semi then side swiped the tow truck.  The accident left Dillon with massive head injuries.  "It took away the right side of his skull, all of it. The surgeons had to take away a lot of his brain," said his cousin Jamie Bell.

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Bell says the tow truck driver saw the trucker brake, but then the semi kept on going. "It's hard knowing someone could let this 15-year-old fight for his life and not come forward," she said. The family is begging anyone with information to call the Missouri Highway Patrol at 417-895-6868. "Come forward. It was an accident, accidents happen but our family needs closure. We have so many questions," she said.

The only thing they do know, is that Dillon adored his family. "He wasn't scared to tell you he loves you," Hurst said. And regardless of what happens next, he knows they love him. "He's loved with all of our hearts and we need your prayers," she said.

Dillon will be transported by an ambulance from Springfield to an acute care hospital in Wichita Thursday. The Missouri Highway Patrol says the only lead it has is the semi is white and might have red paint on it from swiping the tow truck.  In Missouri, there is a move over law for emergency vehicles.  Tow trucks with their lights on, as in this case are considered emergency vehicles.  Hurst says she just wishes the semi moved into the other lane.

The family has set up a medical fund at the Credit Union of America. You can donate to the Dillon McKee Medical Fund at any location.

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