A College Point man who was the victim of a hit-and-run incident in Jamaica remains in critical condition in the hospital.
Suffering multiple injuries, Joseph Huse, 50, has been on a ventilator where he is partially breathing on his own. Huse is fighting for his life in the hospital after he was crossing the street in the crosswalk on 160th and Liberty Avenue on Aug. 14 at around 8 p.m. when he was struck by a car speeding at 37 mph.
The driver didn’t stop and continued driving with Huse on the car until he fell onto the ground. According to reports, the unidentified driver fled the scene and Huse was taken to Jamaica Hospital. As of late, the detectives are investigating the incident that was captured on surveillance video, according to Joseph’s cousin, Donna Huse.
“They have the car in custody and are doing forensics on it. It is still under investigation and no arrests were made as of yet,” Huse told QNS.
Huse, who is currently in a coma, suffered multiple fractures to his body including his pelvis, femur, tibia, ankle and his skull, according Huse.
“Of all of his injuries, due to the impact of Joseph going through the windshield and then falling off of the car and hitting the ground where he landed on his head, the doctor’s are informing us that he has severe brain damage or what’s referred to as ‘Diffuse Axonal Injury,’” Huse wrote on a GoFundMe page to help raise funds to pay for medical or funeral expenses.
The family is looking to reach their goal of $10,000; so far, they have received a total of $300 from donors.
The amount of trauma Huse suffered to his brain has damaged the frontal lobe, which is part of the brain that controls important cognitive skills such as emotional expression, problem solving, language, judgement and sexual behaviors.
“The doctor’s are saying he has severe brain damage to the frontal lobe and his chances of regaining consciousness or being able to function, speak or remember us are very low,” Huse told QNS. “The CT scan shows that he does have some brain activity but because of the amount of trauma he endured the neurons are not transmitting.”
Now, the Huse family must make a difficult decision: Have the hospital do a tracheotomy and insert a feeding tube into Huse’s stomach to give him time to improve and hopefully regain consciousness, or place him in a hospice and remove the machines hoping he continues to breathe on his own and regain consciousness. In the worst case, they would allow him to have a peaceful death on his own and let nature take its course.
“Our family at this time decided to give him a chance with the tracheotomy & feeding tube and give him more time to hopefully wake up,” Huse said.
Huse, a father of a 15-year-old, will need 24-hour care following the accident. If he survives, he will have a long road to recovery.
“I would please ask if with every donation, you can say a prayer for a miracle for Joseph!” Huse said. “Joseph did not deserve this! He has a good heart and a gentle soul. He is a fighter by nature and has always beat the odds! The Huse family appreciates your love and support during this tragedy.”
Huse added, “When a person was in need he was always there to help them. He was always worried about everyone but himself. His laugh is so contagious it would make you laugh. He is very protective over his family. He has such a big heart and a gentle soul. He’s been through a lot in his life and he still walked around smiling.”
