A Mississippi man is lucky to be alive after a lawn mower shot a three-and-a-half inch metal wire up his nose and into his head . Bill Parker , 34 , of Gulfport was mowing his lawn while at his family home last Sunday when he thought a rock hit him in the face not realizing it was actually a metal fence wire . Dr Timothy Haffey , who removed the wire which was as thick as a heavy-duty nail , said that it miraculously dodged all of Parker 's important nerves and arteries . Bill Parker , 34 , of Gulfport was mowing his lawn on April 19 when the rusty metal wire entered his left nostril and was lodged in his sinus cavity ( above the CT scan showing the wire inside Parker 's head ) Parker ( left ) thought a rock had struck him in the face but after going to Memorial Hospital a scan revealed it was a three-and-a-half-inch metal fence wire . 'It threw me back a little bit and it hurt real bad , ' Parker told the Sun Herald . ' I felt my face but I did n't feel any disfiguring or anything . I saw blood , so I knew I got a bloody nose . ' After nearly 15 minutes following the incident , he and his fiancee Katie Heggins decided for him to go to Memorial Hospital for treatment . A CT scan revealed the metal wire had been shot up his left nostril and was lodged in Parker 's sinus cavity beneath his eye socket and next to his jaw hinge . 'Had it gone straight up his nose at the rate it was traveling , it could have gone inside his brain , ' Heggins told the Sun Herald . Dr Haffey removed the wire with a simple sinus surgery which took 20 minutes and entailed making an incision on Parker 's upper lip . 'It was about a nine-centimeter long , rusty piece of metal that went all the way up to his skull base , and it pretty much dodged everything , ' Dr Haffey told the Sun Herald . 'Once the scan showed that , my job was pretty easy . ' 'He should n't have any long-term effects , ' he added . 'Basically , it was a sinus surgery . The problem is this was a rusty piece of metal . ' Dr Timothy Haffey removed the wire in a 20-minute sinus surgery ( left the wire being removed from Parker 's nose ) . Dr Haffey made an incision on Parker 's upper lip during the surgery ( pictured right the incision ) The rusty wire ( above the wire after it was removed during surgery ) dodged all of Parker 's important nerves and arteries , according to Dr Haffey . Following the surgery , Parker shared on Facebook that he was grateful to be alive as he retold his account of what happened the day before . 'Just woke up at memorial hospital . Much of yesterday is kind of a blur and lots of it i just do n't remember , ' he wrote . 'Always wear protective gear for your face when cutting grass ! ! ! I thought a rock or something flew out and hit me , it felt like getting shot in the face . 'Cat scan determined it to be a metallic object in my sinus cavity . ' Parker ( above ) is taking antibiotics to prevent infection and said he plans to find someone else to mow his lawn . ' I 'm grateful to be alive . Several doctors were completely amazed at what had happened to me and stressed how lucky I really am , ' he continued . 'The metal had somehow made its way through a tangle of really important nerves and arteries and finally rested about a millimeter from both carotid artery and my jugular vein . 'Guess it just wasnt my time yet . ' The metal wire was sent to a pathology lab and Parker is taking antibiotics to prevent infection . He was back at work by Wednesday , albeit a little bruised . He said this Sunday , he plans to relax with his fiancee and seven-month-old daughter Sophia — and find someone else to mow his lawn .
WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT . Bill Parker , April 19 , of Mississippi was mowing his lawn on 34 when the wire shot up his left nostril and was lodged in his sinus cavity . Dr Timothy Haffey removed the wire through a 20-minute sinus surgery and said the wire miraculously dodged Parker 's important nerves and arteries . The wire was sent to a pathology lab and Parker is taking antibiotics . Dr Haffey said Parker should not have any long-term effects .