Boy, 6, undergoes surgery after toe gets caught in MRT station escalator
A six-year-old boy dislocated his toe after an accident on an escalator at Botanic Gardens MRT station.
The incident occurred on July 1 while the boy was travelling with his parents and younger brother, reported Shin Min Daily News.
He was standing next to his mother on the escalator, right behind his father who was with his younger brother.
"Our older son was wearing a pair of Crocs at the time and was just standing there, but halfway down the escalator, he cried out suddenly," said the boy's mother, surnamed Liang.
"My husband saw that our son's foot had been caught in the escalator, so he immediately pulled him out."
The parents saw that the boy’s wound was deep, and his last toe appeared to be dangling.
The 33-year-old told Shin Min: "I was in a panic then; I let the MRT staff know about the incident, and they turned off the escalator before bringing us to a first aid room."
An ambulance was called and paramedics applied first aid before taking the boy to National University Hospital.
Liang said her son suffered a dislocated toe and several lacerations on his foot that required a two-hour surgery. He was also given 25 days of medical leave.
"They've also inserted a metal rod into his toe to aid in recovery," she added.
According to the couple, the boy said he was simply standing still on the escalator when the accident occurred.
A photo of his Crocs footwear showed a large hole near the sole of the foam clog.
"Our son is still terrified of escalators and so are we," Liang said. "At present, we prefer to take elevators instead."
no issues
Liang told Shin Min the family received a gift basket from MRT staff following the incident.
Some 12 days after the incident, she was told that an investigation had determined there were no issues with the escalator.
"For the past few weeks, we've had to take our son to the hospital for follow-up treatments to clean the wound. We hope the authorities can compensate us for the medical expenses and our losses," Liang said.
She also said the station's first aid procedures had room for improvement.
"The staff didn't call an ambulance immediately and instead took us to the first aid room before determining that the wound was too deep for them to deal with.
"They even asked if we wanted to call a cab or an ambulance – it feels unprofessional and also wasted a lot of precious time."
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