Students and staff at Montague Regional High School in Prince Edward Island are grieving Monday after one of its student athletes died from a head injury suffered during a school rugby game.
Brodie McCarthy, a Grade 12 student just weeks away from graduation, died early Sunday morning, said Montague principal Seana Evans-Renaud.
"We're a grieving school right now and will be for quite awhile," she said.
McCarthy was playing in the David Voye Memorial rugby tournament in Summerside on Friday when he was injured in what Evans-Renaud described as "a normal rugby play."
'Nothing untoward' about play
"There was nothing remarkable about it. There was nothing untoward about it."
After the play, McCarthy called for a substitute and walked off the field, Evans-Renaud said. The coach checked him over and asked him several questions.
"He was coherent. He was able to answer all the questions that were asked of him," Evans-Renaud said. "And then the coach asked him to sit on the grounds by the sidelines and it was there that he collapsed and the ambulance was called and he was taken to the hospital."
There were a lot of tears but I think that we were able to give each other support by being here together at the school.— Seana Evans-Renaud
She said McCarthy's twin brother, who also plays on the team, accompanied him to the hospital along with a coach and Brodie's girlfriend, while his parents were called.
He was then airlifted to a hospital in Moncton where he underwent surgery. He didn't recover. He was put on life-support for a time as his family had chosen to donate his organs, according to Evan-Renaud.
The rugby team has decided not to play its remaining league games.
School officials decided to open Montague High on Saturday afternoon. The students "came ìn droves," Evans-Renaud said.
"There were a lot of tears but I think that we were able to give each other support by being here together at the school."
Counsellors at school
Counsellors were at the school when classes resumed on Monday. Evans-Renaud said the school has been getting calls from parents who said their children were struggling with the tragedy.
"We're going through a grieving process and we need to work through that as a school," she said. "We're just going day by day and trying to support each other."
Funeral arrangements will be announced at a later time. The school said if his funeral is held on a school day, the school will close out of respect.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to support the McCarthy family.