In a breathtaking update that has sent waves of joy rippling across Canada and far beyond, 12-year-old Maya Gebala – the courageous schoolgirl who stared down a gunman to protect her classmates – has just triumphed in the most critical battle of her young life.

The fearless Tumbler Ridge survivor emerged victorious from emergency brain surgery late on Saturday night, February 21, with doctors confirming the life-threatening fluid buildup and deadly pressure on her brain are completely GONE.

She is now stable, breathing more on her own, opening her eyes and moving her right hand and leg with growing strength – a true miracle that has left her devastated family in tears of pure relief and the entire world cheering her name.

‘Our brave little warrior has come through her emergency surgery,’ her father David Gebala posted in an emotional update early Sunday morning. ‘They’ve placed a drain on her right side, and she’s holding on strong – just another hurdle she’s facing with so much strength. We love you endlessly, Maya!’

The news comes just hours after Maya’s mother, Cia Edmonds, shared a heart-stopping video from her bedside at BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver showing the plucky Grade 7 student finally opening her right eye for the first time since the horror of February 10 – and beginning to respond and move.

Doctors had warned the family she might have only hours to live. Instead, this incredible girl is defying every single expectation, fighting like the absolute warrior she has proven herself to be.

The world simply cannot get enough of Maya’s story – and rightly so.

From the moment the nightmare unfolded in the small British Columbia mountain town of Tumbler Ridge (population just 2,400), Maya Gebala has been nothing short of inspirational.

It was supposed to be an ordinary Tuesday morning at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School. Kids laughing in the hallways, teachers starting lessons, the usual buzz of a close-knit community where everyone knows everyone.

But at around 10am on February 10, 2026, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar – who had already murdered her own mother, 39-year-old Jennifer Jacobs, and 11-year-old half-brother Emmett at their nearby home – stormed the school armed with two firearms.

In the ensuing carnage, described as one of the worst mass shootings in Canadian history, six people were slaughtered: five students and a teacher’s aide. Twenty-seven others were injured. The shooter then turned the gun on herself.

But amid the terror in the school library, one tiny figure stood tall.

Twelve-year-old Maya, outgoing, sporty and full of life, sprang into action. Witnesses say she desperately tried to lock the door to keep the gunman out and shield her terrified classmates. In that split-second act of pure heroism, bullets tore through her – one grazing her cheek and ear, another slamming into her head above the left eye, exiting with devastating force, and yet another striking her neck.

She collapsed under a table, blood pouring, brain swelling instantly. Paramedics fought to save her on the scene before she was airlifted in critical condition to Vancouver’s world-class BC Children’s Hospital, where she was placed in intensive care on a ventilator.

For days, the updates from her parents were agonising. Maya was unconscious. She couldn’t move. The bullet had caused catastrophic damage. Doctors prepared the family for the worst.

Yet even in those darkest hours, tiny sparks of hope flickered.

By mid-February, Maya began taking her own breaths. The ventilator pressure was reduced. She started moving her right hand and leg – tiny twitches at first, then more deliberate motions that brought her devastated parents to their knees in gratitude.

‘Every single day, you show us just how strong, determined, and incredible you truly are,’ her father David wrote on the family’s GoFundMe page, which has now raised a staggering $460,000 – smashing its original $250,000 target as strangers from across Canada, the US, Australia, the UK and beyond poured in donations, prayers and messages of love.

‘You went from not being able to move at all, to moving more and more each day. And now, the nurses have adjusted your ventilator to pressure support because you’re taking your own breaths. What an amazing milestone.’

Then came Saturday, February 21 – a day her family will never forget.

In a video posted by her mother Cia from the hospital room, Maya’s right eye fluttered open for the first time. She appeared to be responding to voices. Her right hand and leg moved again. Cousin Krysta Hunt, speaking for the family, called it ‘amazing progress’ and begged the world to keep praying.

But the fight wasn’t over.

Later that same evening, swelling in Maya’s brain worsened dramatically. Hydrocephalus – a terrifying condition where cerebrospinal fluid builds up inside the brain’s ventricles, creating crushing pressure that can kill or cause permanent damage – had set in with a vengeance.

Doctors rushed her into emergency surgery.

For what felt like the longest hours of their lives, Cia and David waited, clinging to each other, praying harder than they had ever prayed before.

Then came the news every parent dreams of hearing.

The surgery was a COMPLETE SUCCESS.

Surgeons successfully placed a drain on the right side of Maya’s head to relieve the deadly pressure. The excess fluid was removed. The dangerous buildup is gone. Maya came through it like the champion she is and is now stable in intensive care, continuing to show signs of improvement.

‘She’s fighting like the warrior she is,’ one family source told Daily Mail. ‘The doctors are astonished. They had prepared us for the very worst – and yet here she is, opening her eyes, moving, breathing on her own more and more. It’s nothing short of a miracle.’

Medical experts who have spoken to Daily Mail about Maya’s case say her progress is extraordinary for such a severe traumatic brain injury in a child.

‘Hydrocephalus after gunshot wounds to the head is extremely dangerous,’ said one leading paediatric neurosurgeon who has treated similar cases but is not involved in Maya’s care. ‘The pressure can cause herniation and death very quickly. The fact that the emergency drain has worked so effectively, combined with Maya’s previous signs of responsiveness, is incredibly encouraging. Children’s brains have remarkable plasticity – they can sometimes recover in ways adults simply cannot. Maya is clearly a fighter.’

Her mother Cia has barely left her bedside since the shooting, sleeping in a chair, holding her daughter’s hand, whispering words of love and encouragement day and night.

In one emotional update, Cia spoke of her pride in Maya’s younger sister Dahlia, who bravely visited the hospital and held her big sister’s hand despite the frightening machines and tubes surrounding her.

The entire Tumbler Ridge community – a tight-knit town nestled in the stunning Peace River region of British Columbia – has rallied around the Gebala family in ways that have moved the nation.

Vigils, fundraisers, meals delivered, offers of childcare, even strangers driving hours to drop off gifts and cards for ‘little hero Maya’.

Social media has exploded with #PrayForMaya and #WarriorMaya hashtags, with thousands sharing her photo – that bright, smiling face with sparkling eyes and a hockey jersey – alongside messages of hope.

Celebrities, politicians and everyday Canadians have joined the chorus. One major Canadian sports star posted: ‘Maya, you are the definition of courage. Keep fighting, kid – the whole country is behind you!’

Even in the midst of their unimaginable pain, the family has shown extraordinary grace.

Maya’s mother Cia has spoken publicly about feeling compassion for the shooter’s own mother – a heartbreaking sign of the family’s strength and humanity even as they grieve alongside the other victims’ loved ones.

The GoFundMe page, set up to support Maya’s long road to recovery – which will likely include years of physiotherapy, rehabilitation and specialist care – continues to grow daily.

Donors have left notes like: ‘Maya, you tried to save your friends. Now let the world help save you.’ Another wrote: ‘From Australia with love – you are an angel on earth.’

As of February 25, 2026, Maya remains in intensive care but the trajectory is upward. She is stable. The fluid and pressure that threatened her life are gone. She is opening her eyes, moving, responding.

Her father’s latest words say it all: ‘We were told we only had hours and yet here you are, still fighting, still with us… You continue to defy every expectation the doctors and surgeons once prepared us for.’

The road ahead is long and uncertain. Maya faces months, possibly years, of intensive rehabilitation. The bullet’s path through her brain may leave lasting challenges with speech, mobility, memory or coordination. But if anyone can beat the odds, it’s this 12-year-old hockey-loving, paddle-board-riding, classmate-protecting hero from Tumbler Ridge.

Neighbours remember Maya as the bubbly girl who lit up every room, the one always organising games, cheering at sports events, helping younger kids.

‘She’s the kid who would give you her last snack if you were hungry,’ one teacher told local media. ‘And on that terrible day, she tried to give her classmates their lives.’

Now the world is giving back – in prayers, in donations, in an outpouring of love that has sustained her family through the darkest nights.

Medical staff at BC Children’s Hospital, renowned for their expertise in paediatric trauma, have been flooded with messages of support too. One nurse reportedly told the family: ‘In all my years, I’ve rarely seen a patient fight like Maya. She’s special.’

As this miracle story continues to unfold, one thing is crystal clear: Maya Gebala is not just surviving – she is inspiring an entire country and beyond.

Her courage in the library that day saved lives. Her courage in the hospital bed is saving hearts.

The little warrior who opened her eyes after the world thought she might never again is showing us all what true strength looks like.

And the world? It’s cheering louder than ever.

‘Keep fighting, Maya. We’re all right here with you.’

This is a developing story. Daily Mail will bring you every update as brave Maya continues her miraculous journey home.