New Jersey Girl, 6, Dies in Tragic Freak Badminton Accident

A 6-year-old girl was killed by a freak accident that sent the metal shaft of a badminton racquet into her head while she vacationed with her family in Maine.

Lucy Morgan was watching her siblings play badminton at a lakefront cottage in Limerick on June 1 when her 10-year-old brother's racquet broke during a downward swing, dislodging the aluminum shaft from the wooden handle, according to reports.

The shaft flew through the air and pierced Lucy's skull. She was breathing but unresponsive when paramedics rushed her to a local hospital.

The girl, from Hardyston, New Jersey, was then flown by helicopter to the Maine Medical Center in Portland, where she underwent emergency surgery to relieve pressure on her brain.

Her pastor father, Jesse Morgan, said in blog post on his New Creation Living website that she went into cardiac arrest during the operation and was left with "no brain function" and given a "very slim chance" of recovering.

Lucy died early Wednesday after four days on life support, with her father saying on Facebook that she "now sees Jesus face to face."

Jesse Morgan also posted a photo of himself, Lucy's mom, Bethany Morgan, and Lucy's three siblings around her bed as they said their "goodbyes" earlier in the day.

The Maine State Police called her death "such a sad, tragic situation," adding: "Our hearts break for the family," the nj.com website reported Friday.

Lucy's funeral is scheduled for June 15 and will be livestreamed on the website of the Green Pond Bible Chapel in Newfoundland, New Jersey, where her dad is the pastor.

An online GoFundMe appeal for donations to help her family with expenses had raised more than $117,000 as of midday Sunday.