Adela Magana: Woman’s arm amputated after freak mini golf accident

WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT

A woman has had her arm amputated after a freak mini golf accident.

Adela Magana, 53, was with her family celebrating her son Damien’s 13th birthday on August 6 at Golf N’ Stuff mini golf course in Ventura, California.

What was supposed to be a fun family outing quickly soured after a painful incident.

One of the palm trees lining the course fell suddenly on top of Ms Magana as her family watched in horror.

The woman was left trapped and bleeding under the monster 12 metre tree.

She had been sitting on a bench watching the others put and had no chance to move out of the way, VC Star reported.

Doctors had to amputate her right arm, and she is now recovering at Ventura County Medical Centre.

Her 22-year-old son Junior recalled the devastating event.

“I was going to go look for the ball, and by that time, I heard a screeching sound — like a branch breaking,” he told VC Star.

“I thought nothing of it, but then I heard a big old thump, and people were running toward my mum.”

Junior said the family had decided to play mini golf to make something of Damien’s birthday.

“We were trying to make his birthday a little bit better because it was mid-week, and we didn’t know what to do,” he said.

“We thought of something fast: play mini golf and then go have dinner afterward. But we never got to dinner.”

Ms Magana’s husband Amando and two other mini golfers on the course had to lift the heavy tree off of her.

“After that, we went straight into stopping the bleeding,” Junior said.

They then tried to stop the bleeding, using a belt as a tourniquet and instructing others to call emergency services.

She was rushed to hospital where surgeons tried to save her arm, but the nerves and blood vessels were severely damaged.

As a result, her arm was amputated just below the shoulder on August 7.

Nancy, her daughter, said that there is a long road to recovery ahead of Ms Magana.

“She’s a very strong woman—even at this point. She’s not able to talk, but she’s able to nod her head. She has a long journey ahead of her,” she said.

Ms Magana will require subsequent surgeries so that she is able to use a prosethetic, and will also undergo rehabilitation.

Her children are facing trauma after witnessing the horrific scene.

“It’s a lot to take in as a 13-year-old to witness that,” Nancy said. “It’s always going to be there for him.”