By New York Post (U.S.) | Created at 2026-08-07 17:36:13 | Updated at 2026-08-07 18:19:13
44 minutes ago
A New Jersey father miraculously survived — and insisted he wasn’t even in serious pain — after a “huge” piece of a tree branch shot through his face and into his brain when he fell from a ladder in his yard.
Troy Hathaway, 45, came just inches from death while cutting branches in his backyard in Glassboro when the ladder suddenly gave out under him and he fell about 8 feet.
When he got up, he had no idea that a broken branch was sticking out of a massive hole in his jaw.
“Initially, I really thought I broke my jaw,” Hathaway told CBS Philadelphia.
“I hadn’t lost consciousness, I wasn’t nauseous… I felt fine other than being a little bit sore and my ego being a little bit bruised,” Hathaway said.
Nauseating footage from the operating table shared with the outlet shows doctors carefully plucking a long, thick, leafy stick from Hathaway’s head.
Gnarly X-ray images showed the tree branch going through his cheek, nose, eye and up into his brain.
Once Hathaway was rushed to the hospital, doctors determined they needed to call in a specialist.
“This was a pretty huge piece of tree that was stuck through his face and into his brain. And we needed to move quickly on this, but we wanted to move smart,” Neurosurgeon Chris Farrell said.
Farrell’s team decided to go through Hathaway’s nose to remove the branch to avoid having to slice open his skull — similar to a technique sometimes used to remove brain tumors.
A South Jersey father was impaled by a tree branch in his face when he fell from a ladder in his yard. The branch went through his nose and into his brain. Health Reporter Stephanie Stahl got a behind-the-scenes look at the four-hour surgery at Jefferson Health that removed the branch. He was left with only a few stitches and bruises and says he’s completely fine. Click the link in our bio for the full story.
♬ original sound – CBS PhiladelphiaThe branch, which fortunately did not puncture vital tissues, was meticulously removed through Hathaway’s cheek without any damage or bleeding in a grueling four-hour surgery.
He walked out of the hospital with a few stitches, some bruising and a prescription for antibiotics.
Now left with a scar on his cheek, Hathaway told CBS there have been no issues with his sight or any infections as he’s recovered.
He is grateful to be back with his wife and daughter.
“Absolutely. Yes, no, no issues. That’s it’s mind-boggling to think of that,” said Hathaway.
“It’s emotional because it’s tough to sit there and think like how close it could have been,” he said.
