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11-year-old girl loses part of her leg after jumping onto moving train

Posted at 11:18 AM, Aug 09, 2017
and last updated 2017-08-09 13:18:17-04

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – An 11-year-old Indiana girl is in the hospital with a partially amputated leg after officials say she was injured in an accident involving a train Monday.

The family of Breanna Brooks says she was playing on the railroad tracks after school when she tried to jump onto the ladder of a slow moving train. Witnesses say the 6th grader caught her foot, fell off and was dragged down the tracks.

When family and friends heard Breanna’s screams, they called police.

“She was lying in the middle of the tracks,” said Breanna’s Grandpa Jerry Brooks. “I did not know how the hell she got to where she was at, but her leg was off.”

Family members told WXIN that Breanna was with three other kids when the incident happened.

“By the time I get there, a little girl said that she lost her leg and I ran to help,” said neighbor Larry Larmore.

Larmore says he tied his belt around Breanna’s leg to try and stop the bleeding.

“I just took it through the loop and pulled the belt tight and wrapped it. Then I kept on wrapping it on her leg and held it there,” said Larmore.

Breanna’s family says her leg was amputated from the knee down.

“She woke up enough that she raised her leg and this black thing sticks out from underneath and they have a suction cup on there. She just realized her leg is gone and she was bawling,” said Brooks.

As Breanna prepares for another surgery, her grandpa wants to warn other kids to stay away from the railroad tracks, before someone else gets hurt.

“Most accidents on railroad tracks are deadly and she lived. That is what I have to be thankful for,” said Brooks.