CINCINNATI — The driver who Boone County deputies said was hit by a rock thrown by a teenager is recovering from eight hours of surgery, according to his daughter.
William Wehner, 64, suffered serious injuries to his face when a large rock crashed through his windshield as he drove north on KY-237 in Burlington March 30.
Surgeons were unable to fix all the bones in his face and basically reconstructed his eye socket using titanium, his daughter, Meg Oleson, wrote in an email. Wehner's skull was cracked and doctors also had to rebuild his cheek bone.
Wehner's face is still swollen, but the family is hoping his vision will return to normal once the swelling goes down, Oleson wrote.
"He is recovering and doing well at the moment and back home now," she wrote.
Wehner spent Sunday with his daughter and grandchildren. He said he "is beyond grateful" to have survived and he's planning "to take a step back and take things easy for now."
The family started a Gofundme page to raise money to help cover costs related to the incident.
Authorities have charged two teenagers who they said had been throwing rocks at cars that night, including the 14-yea-old who they said hit Wehner with a rock. That teen is charged with first-degree assault and second-degree criminal mischief.
