A TikTok star miraculously survived as he fell more than 60 feet off a cliff onto lava rocks during a hiking trip in Hawaii on Wednesday, his family said.
Caleb Coffee, 18, was hiking with three of his friends when he slipped and fell off the cliff around 2 p.m. and was airlifted to a local hospital, his sister Peyton Coffee said on a GoFundMe page.
Doctors initially believed Coffee suffered multiple serious injuries, including a spinal fracture, broken neck, broken femur and burns all over his body.
“For the past two days all the doctors thought that my spine or neck was broken,” Coffee said Thursday from his hospital bed with multiple stitches in his forehead.
“I just got out of another MRI and it turns out somehow, miraculously that it is not broken, just irritation, and I personally can not make up an explanation for that other than thank you, Jesus,” he said in the video posted to his father Jason’s Instagram story.
Coffee’s father Jason revealed that his son was diagnosed with a broken femur, a fractured wrist, and received two plates and 10 screws in his right elbow while maintaining full motion in his fingers and toes.
Coffee confirmed he did not break his neck or spine and said he had God to thank for his survival as this wasn’t his first near-death experience.
“This wasn’t the first time he has almost died in my life,” Coffee said on own TikTok account. “When I was younger I had severe seizures, grand mal seizures and I almost died, and yesterday I almost died as well.”
“60 to 80 feet, I can’t even fathom it, I don’t even remember. Just woke up and I thought I was going to die, and then I didn’t die, so thank you God.
A GoFundMe was created with a goal of $100,000 to help pay the medical bills as the teen doesn’t have insurance and his family can’t afford the hospital bills.
Over 500 people have raised over $15,000 as of Friday morning.
Coffee became a viral sensation along with his two siblings through his father’s Vine account, where the family would post comedy sketches with his children and wife.
As the family developed a following, the children created their own accounts as Coffee centered his own account around pranks.
Coffee’s TikTok, which boasts over 11 million followers, has the influencer trying out various social media trends, gym workouts and two of the most recent videos show him doing stunts in nature.
The family was warned new injuries could appear over time despite Coffee’s improvements following the near-fatal fall.
“The medics have informed us more injuries will most likely pop up over the next few weeks…” the GoFundMe read.
“If you can’t donate he would appreciate your prayers. He is thankful to be alive but in excruciating pain as of now.”
In his own update on Thursday, Jason Coffee thanked everyone for caring about his son and said it will be a long recovery.
“I want to thank everyone for all your love and support. It truly feels like family. We love you all. Please continue praying. It looks like it’s going to be a long road to recovery but Caleb is strong and we known he’s going to get through this!” Jason Coffee said.
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