Photo: GoFundMe
Dakota Briley has made progress on a long road to recovery. The 20-year-old son of Pipeline legend Shawn Briley endured a horrific car accident last week on Oahu’s North Shore, but his family recently shared a hopeful update.
The accident occurred June 14, as KITV reported. Briley was loading boards into a car by the side of Kamehameha Highway, near the surf break Chun’s, when an 18-year-old driver veered into the shoulder, struck a traffic sign and then him. Dakota was pinned between two vehicles and endured multiple fractures in his legs, pelvis, ribs, and skull. He has also received extensive spinal injuries.
“He’s in really rough shape and needs a miracle from God,” Dakota’s brother Ryder wrote on Instagram after the accident. “His ribs have been crushed, his spine is severed and broken in multiple places, the back of his skull has been crushed, fractured in over eight places, from the hip down his legs have been crushed.”
Since then, Briley has been in critical condition at Queen’s Medical Center. According to KITV, he has undergone four major surgeries and doctors confirmed that his spinal cord is not severed. “The nurses have done a couple tests, and it seems like in his upper body, he responds a bit. There’s a lot we don’t know, but there’s hope,” Briley’s sister, Erin Lau, told KITV.
Briley’s family also told the outlet that he is now breathing 100 percent on his own, which would mark a significant step in a long road to recovery.
A GoFundMe has been started for Briley, which has raised over $220,000 as of this writing. “We are deeply grateful to everyone who has shown love and support for Dakota and our family during this incredibly difficult time,” wrote organizer Haunani Sullivan in an update. “Your prayers, messages, and generous donations are helping us stay strong and hopeful.”
