Boy, 12, critical after being hit in the head by New Year celebratory gun shots... fired from 'MILES' away



Diego Duran hit by stray bullet outside his Florida home

Remains in critical condition but has opened his eyes

A 12-year-old boy is fighting for his life after he was hit in the head by celebratory gunfire an hour into the new year.



Detectives say Diego Duran and his family were sitting outside their home in Ruskin, Florida watching fireworks, reports ABC Action News.



Suddenly at around 1am, the young boy's mother Sandra saw him fall to the ground bleeding from the eyes and the nose.



Scroll down for video



Victim: Diego Duran, 12, was shot in the head by a stray bullet during New Year's celebrations. He remains in critical condition at hospital in Ruskin, Florida

Diego's father, also named Diego,told cfnews13.com that his son just dropped. 'All of a sudden, hell breaks loose - blood all over the place.'

He was rushed to hospital, where doctors realised that he was suffering from a gun shot wound and the bullet had entered the top of his head and was lodged in his cheek.

The boy is in a coma, but did squeeze a nurse's hand and also opened his eyes, his family said.

Although his son remains in a critical condition, Mr Duran told cfnews13.com that he was not giving up.

Tragic: Diego was watching fireworks outside his home when he fell to the ground



Worry: Diego's father, also named Diego, said his son 'ain't going to give up'

He said: 'He’s one of the best men somebody’s ever going to meet when he grows up.

'He’s a man in the making. Somebody just put a stop on him, but he ain’t going give up. He’s going to grow up and be a better man than what I am.'

FALLING BULLETS

More people are injured or killed each year by falling bullets than many would believe.

From 1985 to 1992, 118 victims of gunshot wounds in the Los Angeles area alone were thought to have been struck by them.

These included people hit by bullets while going about their everyday business.

The chance of being killed by a falling bullet is much higher than a typical shooting - because those unlucky enough to be hit by falling shells are more likely to be struck on the head.

And while bullets are travelling slower after being shot into the sky, they are still capable of smashing skulls.

Doctors say a spent bullet falls back to Earth with a speed of between 90 and 180 metres per second.

A bullet travelling at less than 60 metres per second can cause a fatal skull injury.



Detectives believe the boy was hit by celebratory gunfire falling from the sky after it was fired from a distance that could have been miles away.



Sheriff's office spokesman Larry McKinnon said the boy is in a hospital in Tampa in a critical condition with the bullet still lodged.

'It is a crime,' he told 10 News. 'It was an irresponsible act and if we find out who did that the consequences are going to be some very serious charges.'



Investigating detectives found that no one nearby had been firing a gun.



The incident follows the death in December of a teenage Amish girl who police said died in a 'freak accident' after a hunter fired his gun into the air a mile away.

Rachel Yoder, 15, from Ohio, was shot in the head when she was riding her horse and cart back from a Christmas party.



At first it was thought she died as a result of falling from her buggy after her brother found her in a pool of blood.



But when she got to the hospital they found a bullet lodged in her head.



Holmes County Sheriff Timothy Zimmerly told ABC News the man said he was preparing to clean his muzzle-loaded rifle after deer hunting and fired it into the air.



Sheriff Zimmerly said the bullet from his rifle 'is consistent with' the one that struck the girl riding in a buggy more than a mile away.

Location: The accident occurred in Ruskin, Florida outside Diego's home