Former Basketball Wives star Laura Govan has asked friends and fans for prayers, after her son Alijah Arenas was injured in a serious car accident on Thursday in Los Angeles.
Arenas, 18, who Govan shares with former NBA star Gilbert Arenas, crashed a Tesla Cybertruck into a tree and a fire hydrant in the Winnetka neighborhood of L.A. early Thursday, April 24, according to local news reports.
He was transported to an area hospital and placed in a medically induced coma.
Govan asked for prayers in a post on Instagram Thursday. Then on Friday morning local time, the family released a statement to Sports Illustrated saying Arenas is improving.
“In a remarkable and hopeful development, Alijah Arenas has come out of his coma and has shown significant signs of progress within the last 24 hours,” the statement read. “Alijah opened his eyes and was able to write on a piece of paper that he remembered the smoke and asked, ‘Did anyone get hurt?’”
The family praised the “brave” resident who pulled the teenager from the burning vehicle.
Local news station ABC 7 reported the Cybertruck burst into flames after hitting the tree. The televsion station interviewed a man named Bryant Sandoval, who said noise from the 4:55 a.m. crash woke him up. Sandoval grabbed a fire extinguisher and sprang into action.
“I heard some banging coming from inside the car, so we knew someone was in there,” said Sandoval. “[We] tried putting out the fire, didn’t help. Tried smashing the back window on the driver’s side, couldn’t do it — couldn’t figure out how to open the door.”
Sandoval and others frantically tried to pull the teenager to safety before paramedics arrived.
“Basically, just saw the driver’s side window slightly ajar, so just pulled that down and he stuck his hand out. We grabbed it, pulled him out and shortly afterward the fire department came,” he explained.
He said the teen told the good Samaritans that he was the only person in the truck.
“At that point, there was nothing more important than taking him out,” Sandoval said. Residents eventually pulled Arenas from the vehicle, potentially saving his life.
Alijah Arenas is committed to play for the USC Trojans.
His dad was a three-time NBA All-Star. His mom was a main cast member on seasons 1 and 2 of Basketball Wives.
Watch the local news report below:
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