Family of 'Miracle Boy' Who Fell 60 Feet Off Italian Cliff Awaits His Return to the U.S.

Hayden Hill, 18, was on a class trip to Italy when he plunged off a cliff on June 6

An Alabama mother says she is hopeful her son will return to the U.S. to receive further medical care, one week after he fell off a 60-foot cliff outside of Rome and sustained serious injuries.

Hayden Hill, a recent high school graduate, was on a class trip to celebrate the milestone when the accident occurred, his mother, Sharon Hicks, wrote on Facebook.

Hill suffered a dislocated hip, broken ankle and “a small head injury,” Hicks wrote.

“All very bad injuries,” his mom, who flew to Italy to be by her son’s side, shared, “but [he’s] ALIVE which is all that matters. The community here calls him ‘The Miracle Boy’ and they have gathered around us with so much support and kindness.”

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Hill, 18, was searching for a beach along with a friend on Thursday, June 6 when the teenager jumped over a wall and plummeted off the cliff, according to NBC affiliate WAFF-TV and ABC affiliate WAAY-TV.

"My mom got the phone call first, and she called me,” Hill’s sister, Hannah Hill, told WAAY-TV. “But where he was, there was no way to get to the beach. So he was stranded where he was for about an hour. And the coast guard was finally able to get to him. So they could take him to the hospital.”

Hill is receiving care in a small, community hospital in Nettuno, about 40 miles south of Rome, but the language barrier has proven frustrating, Hicks said.

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According to a post on Thursday, June 13, which was viewed by PEOPLE before being deleted, his mother wrote that the coastal hospital “does a good job of providing healthcare to the residents of this community but maybe not the best place for 2 Americans that need special assistance.”

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However, she added that she was grateful that her son — who had surgery to repair his dislocated hip and femur — was recovering.

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“Still looks like we will be home by the end of this week,” she wrote. “Our US nurse should arrive today to help us with transport arrangements.”

The family has started a GoFundMe, dubbed “Operation Let’s Bring Hayden Home!,” to help with the considerable cost involved in flying Hill back to New Hope.

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