Texas Teen Revived 2 Hours After Dying Due to Rock Climbing Incident

Sammy Berko Cardiac arrest during rock climbing activity Texas teen died and revived after two hours Literal miracle Miracle Child Catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT) super rare genetic disorder arrhythmias

By Jo Anne Hubert , Parent Herald Apr 20, 06:36 pm

A mother's prayer revived her son following a fatal rock climbing incident that caused him to suffer cardiac arrest and be pronounced dead by a medical team. Sixteen-year-old Sammy Berko from Missouri City, Texas, did some rock climbing in a local gym when he suddenly passed out and died.

The boy's mother, Jennifer Berko, told Houston's Fox 26 that their son climbed on top of the wall and rang the bell. They found him on top with his body limped, undecided at the start whether he was just playing around or had actually passed out. When they saw that Sammy was already unresponsive, they slowly lowered him.

His parents soon discovered that their son's heart had suddenly stopped, and he had suffered cardiac arrest. Gym workers started performing CPR. When the paramedics and doctors arrived, they did too for two long hours until they declared to his parents that he was already gone.

Jennifer and her husband Craig were given some alone time with their son to say their goodbyes.

"I started talking to him, just telling him how much I love him and sorry that we didn't know how to save him. Suddenly, as I started praying, my husband said, 'Oh my gosh, he's moving,'" shared the mother to the news outlet.

The parents immediately yelled for the medical team, who ran back to administer aid again.

Revived With No Serious Brain Injuries

Now called their miracle child, Sammy was revived and declared alive with no brain injuries, which the medical team said should have been highly possible as the teenager went so long without oxygen.

"These are professionals who have been doing this their entire lives, who have seen the worst of the worst. Each and every one of them afterward came to us and said that they have never seen anything like this before. Ever," expressed Jennifer.

Aside from having an ischemic spine injury he is currently recovering from and working out through physical therapy, Sammy has only experienced short-term memory loss, a minimal effect compared to the potential serious brain injuries that the fatal incident could have brought, Fox News reported.

When he woke up, he was already in the transitional ICU, without any memory of what transpired on the day of the incident. He can only recall what happened the night before when he signed a waiver online for the rock climbing activity.

Literal Miracle

According to the Medical Director of the Pediatric Rehabilitation Program at TIRR Memorial Hermann, Dr. Stacey Hall, Sammy has Catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT), which she describes as a "super rare genetic disorder" affecting the heart.

The Boston Children's Hospital explained that CPVT causes arrhythmias, sudden abnormal rhythm disturbances that occur most of the time when adrenaline levels are high, like during doing exercise or feeling a strong emotion. Further, they stated that this disorder could happen even to healthy children.

"I was very struck by his story. It's very gripping and very unusual. We do see kids all the time here who have had CPR, but with very prolonged CPR, we typically see very severe global anoxic brain injury, so to me, he is a literal miracle," Dr. Hall declared to Fox News.

Sammy is still in the hospital doing physical therapy and recovering strength, especially in his legs. His parents are currently preparing their home for his homecoming and to temporarily accommodate his wheelchair.

It was found that three years ago, the Berkos lost their son Frankie to the same genetic disorder that almost killed his brother. Thus, Sammy and his mother are currently going through testing and taking medications to hopefully put an end to the genetic issue.