Lima, Peru, Aug 9, 2011 / 14:26 pm
A Peruvian congressman is crediting his daughter’s guardian angel and series of “miracles” for her recovery from a potentially fatal gunshot wound to the chest she suffered on Aug. 4 in Lima.
Congressman Renzo Reggiardo said on Sunday his 9 year-old daughter, Arianna, was shot while on a family outing on August 5. She was rushed to a nearby clinic where doctors worked to save her life.
Police said a suspect in the shooting has been detained, and local officials are pledging to strengthen the penalties for such offenses, which are on the rise in the Peruvian capital.
Congressman Reggiardo told the television program Frecuencia Latina that the bullet pierced Arianna’s chest but only damaged the membrane that covers the lungs, called the pleura. For Reggiardo, it was proof that “her guardian angel did his job.”
A practicing Catholic, the congressman said his daughter’s recovery was also the result of “a series of miracles” that happened following the shooting. This included the help they received from an unknown couple who came upon the scene and offered to help bring Arianna to the hospital in their car.
Speaking on Peruvian radio, Reggiardo said the family has experienced an enormous outpouring of solidarity. “My daughter has recovered satisfactorily, and what has happened to her is a miracle,” he said, adding that she should be released from the hospital this weekend.
“She is a heroine. She is very mature. She told me she would have preferred that I went home to sleep so I wouldn’t be uncomfortable. These things move you, to see your daughter confined to bed because of an incident that in a second could rob her of her innocence,” Reggairdo said.
The congressman’s wife, Carla Davila, said the family prayed to the Virgin Mary and the angels for their daughter’s recovery. Davila thanked the public for their solidarity and prayers and said her family hopes to recover quickly from the incident.
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