Redmond boy, 5, back home recovering from serious facial injuries after Bend Parkway crash

His mom says: 'You never think it could happen to you, you know? Until it does.'

(Update: Adding video, comments from family involved in crash, family of driver)

REDMOND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Five-year-old Kai Banderas of Redmond, thrown from a car in last Friday's violent Bend Parkway crash, is back home from a Portland hospital, on the mend from serious facial injuries, while his shaken mom is very thankful and grateful that things didn't turn out far worse.

Kai's mom, Elizabeth Banderas, said Monday, “He’s okay for a minute, like he forgets what happened -- but then all of a sudden, he remembers, but it’s like back and he’s not himself any more.”

Banderas was home Friday morning when she got a call, telling her Kai was involved in an accident and had serious injuries.

“You never think it could happen to you, you know? Until it does. And then it makes you realize anything could happen to you,” Banderas said. 

The crash injured four people, including two young children, and caused lengthy lane closures and traffic delays on Friday.

The 5-year-old was in the car with his nanny, 65-year-old Jackie Fallowfield, and an infant child from another family.

Fallowfield's daughter told NewsChannel 21 her mom has known Kai his whole life, and the Banderas family has complete trust in her as a nanny.

She said Friday morning, Fallowfield had just dropped off another child at a preschool in Bend and was heading north toward Redmond.

The nanny's daughter told NewsChannel 21 her mother is not sure what caused the crash, but everything went blank -- and the next thing she knew, she was on the other side of the highway, with her car split in half and Kai thrown out of the car in his car seat.

“She definitely kicked into fight or flight,” Banderas said of her nanny. “She jumped out of the car and ran to find the kids when it happened.”

The infant was safe in their car seat, and Fallowfield had a few broken ribs and was shaken up. Kai was flown to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in Portland, and was treated for degloving injuries on his face, and two sprained ankles. 

“But he very clearly had like -- his face was just unrecognizable,” Banderas said.

It’s not lost on Banderas how close her son was to death. 

“So grateful -- I mean, it really makes you change your outlook on everything,” Banderas said. “How you punish them, how you treat them, how you talk to each other. It just makes you realize how life can literally be gone in an instant.”

Kai is back home now and in good spirits around his two siblings, but he can get embarrassed by his wounds.

“And it wasn’t until he went to the bathroom -- and then he went and hid in his room, and that was the first time he saw himself in the mirror … What did he say?” Banderas asked her husband Eric. 

“He said he was scary,” Eric Banderas recalled. 

“He didn't want to see himself,” Elizabeth Banderas added. 

While it’s tough to see him struggle, Kai's mom can’t help but be thankful.

“His scars aren’t going to matter, as soon as he’s healed and he’s back to his normal self,” Banderas said. “We’re glad that we’re here at home, and not at a funeral.”

Police are still investigating the cause of the crash, along with the Deschutes County District Attorney's Office, and few details have been released.

NewsChannel21 was told search warrants have been issued and they hope to have more information by the end of the week.

You can find a link to Kai's GoFundMe page here. Another GoFundMe page has been established on behalf of the infant ant her family, here.