Boy struck by train lives to tell story

NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) - After two months in the hospital, a boy who lost his leg after being struck by a train will be released from the Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters Thursday.

Police say Jahmee Harris, who is from Hampton, was visiting family in Newport News. Jahmee  was with a group of kids playing on the tracks close to Bellwood Road at the time of the accident Oct. 14, according to police and witnesses.

His leg was severed by the train and after 25 surgeries and weeks spent at Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters, Jahmee is learning to live life without one leg.

"You know it's just a leg," Jahmee's cousin Janaria Lickey said.  "We can always buy another one."

"I'm just real grateful that he's here," Jahmee's mother Moishy James. "[I'm] really grateful that he's still alive."

Jahmee told WAVY.com the last couple of months have been tough for him and he has been in a lot of pain. Doctors say he will require long-term care and his mother has been forced to cut back on work hours.

When Jahmee comes home, he will need around the clock care. His mother said money has been tight and this year, Christmas will not be the same.

"The Christmas tree isn't even up," Moishy James said.  "Hopefully it's going up, but I don't know what's going under the tree."

Having Jahmee around was special enough for the family. They have his smile, which provides them with strength. 

"I believe that this accident has grown all of us up," Lickey said.  "It makes us realize what we have."

Doctors say Jahmee will eventually be fitted for a prosthetic leg.

Investigators from CSX are still looking into the incident.