13-Year-Old Tumbler Ridge Shooting Survivor Discharged After 262 Days in Hospital

Maya Gebala, a 13-year-old who survived the February 2024 mass shooting at a secondary school in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, was discharged from British Columbia Children’s Hospital after 262 days of care. The girl, who was shot three times, including a head wound that caused severe brain injury, underwent five surgeries, including the implantation of a prosthetic skull.

Her father, David Gebala, posted a message on Facebook marking the milestone. > "There was never a day I stopped believing we would get here. The road ahead is still long, but this is a milestone no one thought we would reach," he wrote, adding that he considered his daughter "the bravest person I know."

Gebala’s update detailed a series of recovery milestones, such as Maya opening her eye and moving her leg 251 days after the attack, receiving her prosthetic skull 179 days later, smiling intentionally during a thumb-war game 145 days after the shooting, and speaking again 61 days before her discharge. He thanked the medical staff who supported the family throughout the process.

Since the incident, Maya’s mother, Cia Edmonds, has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging that the shooter used the ChatGPT tool to plan the attack. The case is among several lawsuits in the United States and Canada targeting the tech company over alleged negligence. OpenAI has responded that it enforces a zero-tolerance policy for the use of its tools in violent activities and deactivated the shooter’s original account in June 2025, though a second account was later created.

The incident also prompted legal action by the province of British Columbia against OpenAI, and U.S. authorities recently arrested a Washington state resident accused of providing advice and money to the shooter before the attack.