A 19-year-old Washington State University student from Bellevue is in a medically induced coma after he fell from a second-floor railing and landed on his head over the weekend.

Griffin Healey suffered no broken bones, and his vital signs are stable.

Healey's family said he had returned to Pullman after spending Thanksgiving at home with his family in Bellevue. Late Saturday night, witnesses said Healey was trying to sit on a second-floor railing on a balcony at the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity house when he fell backward and landed on his head. He was unconscious but breathing.

Police said alcohol played a factor in the fall.

Griffin's family is posting updates for their very wide circle of friends.

They said he had emergency brain surgery and that he's stable, but the long-term picture is very unclear.

Doctors have put him in a coma to deal with the swelling to his brain. They don't know how badly it's been damaged.

But they say they are preparing for the likelihood that he will be in the hospital for weeks, perhaps months.

Friends said the Healey family has a very large support network. His mom leads a Bible study group that was praying for them Monday night.

It was the third alcohol-related fall by a WSU student in recent months.

Administrators recently announced the creation of an alcohol and drug task force to look into the problem of drinking.