A 2-year-old boy had his foot amputated Saturday when he was accidentally struck by a riding lawn mower being operated by his mother, Pasco County authorities said.
According to Pasco County Fire Rescue, the mother was riding a commercial zero turn riding lawn mower at the family's home in rural Spring Hill and saw the child running toward her. She tried to shut off the mower but couldn't do so in time.
As the boy approached the mower, he fell and his leg went beneath the mower, which severed it between his ankle and knee.
Emergency personnel responded to the home on the 17000 block of Orange Drive around 11 a.m. They packed the amputated leg on ice and had the boy transported to Tampa General Hospital.
Authorities have not named the child or the mother.
This is at least the second such accident in the Tampa Bay area in 27 months. In April 2013, 2-year-old Ireland Nugent lost both legs below her knees when her father accidentally backed over her on a riding lawn mower in the family's Palm Harbor driveway.