Teen recovering after head-on ATV collision

“It’s just such a miracle,” Veronica Love says of her cousin’s recovery.

Her cousin, Ruslan Shestak, of rural Columbia Falls is lucky to be alive. On the night of Wednesday, June 22, Shestak, 16, was in a head-on collision on Highway 2 next to Hodgson Road. Shestak was riding an ATV when he collided with a car.

Though he does not remember the incident, it would appear that as he turned onto the road, a car T-boned or front-ended him. He flew about 100 feet, his cousin said, from the force of the collision. He was not wearing a helmet, according to Love.

Shestak was transported by ambulance to the hospital and was flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle only a few hours later. Shestak was on life support and put into an induced coma due to the extent of his injuries.

Both collar bones, his left scapula, arm, and wrist, both hips, both femurs, and some ribs were broken. An artery in his left arm was torn and a nerve in that arm also suffered some damage.

Doctors are uncertain whether Shestak will regain use of his left arm. It is estimated that Shestak will be in the hospital for at least a year.

Love says that recovery has been slow. Shestak was recently transferred out of the ICU and is now able to stand up for a moment with assistance from doctors. He is also able to sit in a chair for a short period of time. Love says he is finally able to eat food, something he was very excited about.

Love says that it will be a long year of recovery, rehab, and therapy.

“We pray he gets better every day,” she said in an email.

Because Shestak is a minor, he must have a parent with him at all times. To that end, his mother, Julia, has left 10 kids at home and has quit her job to be in Seattle with her son. The hospital is currently providing housing on a week-to-week basis. Love set up a Gofundme account for the family to help them with other expenses to allow Shestak’s parents to stay with him.

“This is important for every teen to learn from, that you need to be safe,” Julia Shestak said in an email. “You never know what could happen.”

To support the Shestak family, visit https://www.gofundme.com/2b4jxt8.