An infant boy named Luka has made a great recovery after he was randomly attacked in a park in the Australian city of Brisbane.
Luka’s mother (she has not been named or further identified) took the nine-month-old for a day in the park on August 27 when a man attacked the baby out of nowhere, throwing a Thermos of scalding hot coffee on the helpless infant. The man’s image was caught on multiple CCTV cameras, but so far, no one knows just who he is. Police describe him as in his 30s, of a normal weight for his height, having tanned skin, and wearing glasses, a black hat, shirt and shorts.
Paul Dalton, a detective inspector with the Queensland police, said the man’s assault was “almost like an ambush.”
It’s been a week since police released the video images and so far they have no leads about the man’s identity, at least not that they are willing to share with the public.
Little Luka has already endured three surgeries to help correct the burn damage, quite a lot for anyone, let alone a baby less than one-year-old. But his mother says he is walking about and “causing chaos.” In pictures from the hospital, it’s easy to see deep red burn marks on Luka’s skin; the boy is going to need skin grafts. His mother called her son “incredibly resilient,” and said she was very proud of him.
She is also thankful for the outpouring of financial support shown by strangers who donated to an online fundraiser to help the family with their expenses. The mother said she was “blown away” by how many people kindly donated to a family they didn’t even know. She said the donation money has already amounted to enough to take care of the boy’s “ongoing care needs,” which lifted a “weight” from her. Not only that, but there’s enough money to pay the family’s living expenses while they concentrate on bringing Luka back to full health.
The fundraiser opened asking for a modest $5,000, but in just a few days, the pot had grown to a value of $7,000.
It is easy to see that Luka is in good spirits despite the traumatic attack. After a few days in hospital the little boy was laughing and clapping his hands together along with the nursing staff.
‘Not only that it will also support myself, my family, and ongoing mental health, given the nature of the event this will be an extremely long journey ahead for us all.’
The campaign was launched in the days after the alleged attack with a target of just $5000; by midday on Monday, it had raised more than $110,000.
