Girl injured in lawn mower accident expected to be released from hospital Friday

The little girl severely injured when she slipped under a lawn mower last week is expected to be released from the hospital on Friday.

Her mother, Tonya Streck, says 2-year-old Taryn Graalf’s recovery has gone so well doctors may not have to perform any more surgeries. Taryn had part of her right leg severed in the accident.

Tonya Streck said in a news conference last Thursday that her daughter is expected to recover. It’s a relief because Tuesday night she didn’t know what to expect when she rushed to the hospital not yet knowing her daughter’s condition.

"I mean her foot was completely gone. There was just bone and tissue, it was exposed. It was pretty bad. And then you could just see the skin hanging on the left foot."

Two-year-old Taryn's right leg was amputated at her calf after slipping and falling beneath the lawn mower on her father's Council Bluff's farm.

Taryn is among hundreds of children across the U.S. who have been injured by a lawn mower. The statistics are staggering: each year 800 children are run over by mowers and tractors. And of those, 600 of those children have to have amputations.

Experts say most accidents can happen in a blink of an eye. John Brooks who helps families across the country does stand firm that these accidents are preventable.

"Children are unpredictable. An equipment operator may have less than a second to react,” said Brooks. "The best thing that you can do is keep your kids inside when mowing."

At Nebraska Medicine, Taryn's family feel her medical care is setting her up for a good, healthy future.

"We just know she is, she is going to be fine with it,” said Streck.

The lawn mower that injured Taryn did not have a protective cover, but those are not full proof. Experts say lawn mower injuries occur most often when children are running behind mowers and riding on mowers.