Boy Injured While Protecting Sister from Philadelphia Plane Crash Learns to Walk Again, Despite Being Told He Wouldn't
Andre Howard III was in a car with his siblings and his father when the deadly crash involving a medical transportation jet in Philadelphia occurred on Jan. 31
Andre III was injured while protecting his sister from the debris, and his family was told by doctors that the child may never walk again
"You have to work hard and always protect people," a recovering Andre III told ABC affiliate WPVI almost four months after the incidentA 10-year-old boy who was injured while shielding his sister from a Philadelphia plane's falling debris almost four months ago is now speaking out about his scary ordeal and amazing recovery.
"I just saw a big fire, and my dad told me to protect my little sister, and I tried to jump on her," Andre Howard III told ABC affiliate WPVI in an interview posted on Tuesday, May 13, about his experience.
On Jan. 31, Andre III was in a car with his siblings and his father, Andre Howard Jr., when the crash — involving a medical transportation jet that left Northeast Philadelphia Airport and was heading for Missouri — occurred near a mall, WPVI reported at the time. All six people aboard the plane were killed.
Andre III's father previously told WPVI that debris was flying everywhere.
"My son … tells his little sister, 'Get down,' ' the elder Howard recalled at the time. 'And he grabs her, I hear the glass shatter. I turn around, there's a piece of metal sticking out of my son's head from the plane.'
Andre III later said that he felt like he was experiencing a bad headache and the need to vomit when the debris struck.
A good Samaritan took off his shirt to apply pressure to Andre III's head before the police took the family to Jefferson Torresdale Hospital, where Andre III underwent surgery.
"They told us my son wasn't supposed to make it,' Howard Jr. told the outlet 'They also told us, 'They don't do children trauma.' But they did for us, which was nothing but God.'
Andre III was later brought to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Doctors initially told the family the child may never walk again.
But Andre III defied the odds as he underwent tests and surgeries while at the hospital. His physical therapy consisted of relearning how to walk and developing his motor skills again.
"When they first told me [I wouldn't walk], I was sad,' Andre III told WPVI in his new interview. 'But now I'm not. I can move everything."
He added, "I think it's the new me, because I got better at my game and basketball."
Andre III's family previously called the child a 'hero' for protecting his younger sister.
"To face death yesterday and speaking today, stepping up for his little sister,' Howard Jr. said around the time of the crash, "like I train him and his other little brothers to do off of instinct. He's my hero.'
Andre III's heroic deed has brought him in contact with Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown and recently retired Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham.
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As for his message to people following his experience, Andre III told WPVI: "You have to work hard and always protect people.'
The Soans Christian Academy, a Philadelphia school where Andre III and his siblings attended, had earlier launched a fundraiser to help the family.
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