Pliers impale teen through hip after he slips and falls on ice, Kansas family says

Mitchell Willetts
·2 min read

A Kansas teen was impaled by a pair of pliers after slipping and falling on ice, his family says.

The “freak accident” happened Jan. 20 in the town of WaKeeney, the boy’s mother, Alicia Zeman, said in a Facebook post, sharing gruesome photos of the aftermath.

Joey Zeman was shoveling snow outside his family’s home when he slipped on ice, then noticed his pliers were gone, the 15-year-old told KWCH.

The pliers became “embedded” in bone, Zeman’s family says.
The pliers became “embedded” in bone, Zeman’s family says.

“Well, I got up and noticed my pliers weren’t in my pouch,” he told the outlet. “And I looked down and they were inside me.”

It wasn’t the business end of the pliers that pierced his hip, but one of the long, dull handles, photos show. In X-ray images, the metal grip can be seen lodged several inches deep.

Joey tried to yank the tool out of his side, but it wouldn’t budge, his mom said.

When he called her to say he was on the way to the hospital, his mom first thought he was joking, KWCH reported.

“I couldn’t believe it ‘cause I just thought maybe it just poked it or (there was) a little hole or something, not literally stuck in there and hanging out,” she told the station.

Joey was flown by helicopter to an emergency room in Wichita, his mother said, adding that the hospital performed a CT scan to “make sure no major organs were affected.”

“The physician told us that the end of the pliers were embedded in his bone and that’s why he couldn’t pull them out on his own!” Alicia Zeman said.

The family stayed the night at the hospital and were discharged the next day, Alicia Zeman said.

Joey Zeman.
Joey Zeman.

“We are so blessed to have so many caring family and friends and a great community surrounding us,” she said. “The outcome could have been so much worse and we are extremely thankful it wasn’t.”

WaKeeney is roughly 300 miles west of Kansas City.

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