The toddler is improving and in stable condition at Scott & White Memorial Hospital, according to the child’s mother, whose name is being withheld because of concerns about hateful postings appearing on the Internet.
“She is on a respirator, but she is not unconscious. She is sedated and whenever she comes to, she tries to fight and pull the tube out of her mouth. They said if everything is fine, then sometime today they should pull out the tube,” the mother said.
The toddler sustained several serious injuries including a fractured pelvis and neck, subdural hematoma and several injuries to her face, according to the mother.
The accident occurred about 8 p.m. Sunday on West Adams Avenue in Temple when the toddler wandered from her family at a laundromat.
According to the mother, the toddler was sitting in a chair inside the laundromat with her dad, while the mother stepped out to the car to grab a bottle for their 4-month-old baby.
When she came back in about 20 seconds later, the dad asked where the girl was, the mother said.
“We started looking for her. We looked behind the vending machine and my husband used a knife to jimmy the bathroom door open. I thought I heard her voice in there. We circled outside the building and kept going back and forth, in and out. I heard a woman say she thinks someone got hit and I didn’t think it was her. I kept saying, ‘no it’s not her, no it’s not her’ and then I knew it was her and I ran and screamed. I got there before the police, but they wouldn’t let me touch her. I just wanted to touch her foot to let her know I was there,” the mother said.
“This is a terrible accident that can happen to anyone. And it happened so fast. You can turn around to rinse a dish and it could be you. It’s a horrible, horrible price to pay,” the toddler’s uncle said.
The investigation indicated that speed, alcohol or impairment by the driver were not factors in the crash, according to Sgt. Brad Hunt, public information officer for the Temple Police Department.
The driver of the vehicle that struck the toddler stopped immediately and called the police, Hunt said.
“I just want her (the driver) to know that it wasn’t her fault. It was an accident and I don’t blame her. It’s so hard on this end, I know she has got to be hurting,” the mother said.
An investigation into the incident is ongoing, Hunt said.
“We are just hoping the child pulls through,” he said Sunday night.
jthompson@temple-telegram.com
