Miracle as boy, 9, injured in Sea World Helicopter crash is taken off life support

A Geelong boy who survived the horrific Sea World helicopter crash has been taken off life support and is now in a stable condition in hospital.

Leon De Silva, 9, was placed in an induced coma after sustaining serious injuries in the helicopter crash on on the Gold Coast on Monday afternoon which killed pilot Ash Jenkinson and three passengers.

The three other passengers on board were critically injured, including Leon and his mum Winnie, 33, who were rushed to different hospitals. 

Leon was taken off life support in Queensland Children’s Hospital in Brisbane on Thursday. His condition has been listed as stable.

‘It’s a bloody miracle,’ a Queensland Health spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia.

Western Sydney boy Nicholas Tadros, 10, whose mum Vanessa, 36, died in the crash remains on life support in a Gold Coast hospital. 

Leon (left), pictured with his mum Winnie de Silva (right) was taken off life support on Thursday

Leon’s stepfather Neil was seen on Thursday talking on the phone looking very happy outside the Gold Coast hospital where his wife is recovering. 

His sister Julie has kept a constant vigil at Leon’s bedside 70km away in Brisbane since the accident while he has remained on the Gold Coast with be with Winnie.

‘The main issue is the extensive injuries that he (Leon) has. He’s lying in bed at the moment. He is still laying with his eyes closed and not able to talk or communicate at this stage,’ Mr de Silva told Sunrise earlier on Thursday.

‘But the nurses told Julie yesterday that he could hear us talk.’ 

A day earlier, he broke down in tears while discussing his stepson’s condition, who suffered a fractured skull and severe trauma to the brain.

‘Leon’s the worst at the moment, he’s in an induced coma because of the head trauma and trauma on the brain,’ he told the Today show.

‘Our major concern is Leon when they wake him up that he’s okay. I’m just doing what I can for them, I’ve got no choice.’ 

Leon has spent the last three days in an induced coma in Queensland’s Children’s Hospital

Leon’s mum Winnie, who’s recovering on the Gold Coast broke her silence from her hospital bed on Wednesday.

‘I heard a huge bang and the only thing I could feel was the shaking of the helicopter,’ she told the Herald Sun.

‘I could see the pilot pressing all these buttons, stressed out – he didn’t know what to do.

Leon had arrived in Australia last year to be reunited with his mum who’s originally from Kenya. 

The family had travelled to the Gold Coast for a ‘budget’ holiday when Mr de Silva shouted his wife and stepson a 10-minute joy flight while visiting Sea World.

The helicopter the pair were flying in clipped another and crashed seconds after take-off.

The disaster claimed the lives of pilot Ash Jenkinson, 40, Sydney mum Vanessa Tadros, 36, and British couple Ron, 65, and Dianne Hughes, 57.

Mr de Silva issued his  and his wife’s condolences to the families of the four victims.

‘We’re going through hell but we can’t imagine what they’re going through,’ he said. 

‘She  (Winnie) wanted to let them know she’s thinking of them and praying for them.’ 

Nicholas Tadros, 10, (pictured on Monday) is still on life support in hospital. His mum Vanessa (right) died in the crash