A man who survived being shot in the face following a road rage confrontation on Halloween spoke out about the traumatizing incident.
“It’s a miracle to be alive,” said Eury Cerda.
Cerda said the night began when he took his daughter to go trick-or-treating.
“We were matching costumes as Harry Potter this year,” said Cerda.
What looked to be a fun night of collecting candy quickly turned into a terrifying fight for survival.
As Cerda traveled near the area Northwest 87th Avenue and 64th Street with his 6-year-old daughter in Medley, he found himself in a road rage confrontation.
“I guess this person interpreted us as cutting him off and he becomes enraged,” said Cerda.
Surveillance video captured Cerda exiting his car to confront the other driver, attempting to calm him down.
“I try to tell him I have my daughter in the vehicle and I tell him, ‘You have also kids in your car,’” said Cerda.
Despite his attempt to defuse the situation, as Cerda began to walk away, the other driver exits his vehicle with a gun in hand.
“I had my hands in the air and I tell him, ‘Are you going to shoot me? I have my daughter in the car,’” said Cerda.
With children watching from inside both vehicles, the other driver shot Cerda in the face.
Surveillance footage showed a shocked Cerda running across the street, narrowly avoiding being hit by another car that was passing in the opposite direction.
“What are you saying to your daughter?” 7News’ Sheldon Fox asked Cerda.
“I’m telling her, ‘Relax.’ She’s crying, she’s saying, ‘Daddy, what’s going on, what’s happening?’” Cerda said.
As he bled profusely from his mouth, Cerda got back to his car and drove himself to a Doral urgent care.
“Choking, coughing up on blood, then it’s just like, I’ve never been shot before, to thinking I’m gonna die,” Cerda said.
The bullet came within centimeters of striking his spine.
Cerda was in a coma for six days after it happened.
Cell phone video provided by Cerda’s family showed him in the hospital after he awoke, unable to speak as nurses gave him a vocal valve.
“Try to say your name,” a nurse tells Cerda.
“Eury,” he responded.
His family members are heard gasping after hearing him speak for the first time since he was nearly killed that Halloween night.
“Doctors told me it was a miracle,” said Cerda.
Despite his miraculous survival, he still has a long way to fully recover.
He currently lives with tubes in his body, having lost 20 pounds since the shooting, and undergoing continued therapy. His daughter has also been going to therapy after experiencing the traumatic event.
Many of the simple things he did for his daughter he still can’t do yet.
“Take her to school, make her breakfast, comb her hair, do the every day important things as a father, to make sure she feels all the love,” said Cerda.
Authorities say 54-year-old Emilio Rodriguez, a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue civilian employee, was the man responsible for shooting Cerda.
Rodriguez was charged with attempted murder with a firearm.
If you would like to donate to help Cerda’s family cover medical expenses, click here.