After the incident, the boy was transported by an air ambulance to Perth. (Representational Pic)
A five-year-old boy lost his toe after an accident while he was playing on a merry-go-round in Western Australia. According to news.com.au, the unfortunate event took place on August 12 at the Geraldton foreshore, approximately 424km to the north of Perth. The boy, Jaeger Verryt, was enjoying the ride alongside his family and friends. The merry-go-round installed there is ground-integrated so it's wheelchair accessible.
After the incident, the boy had to be transported by an air ambulance to the Perth Children's Hospital, the outlet said. Despite the efforts of emergency personnel who disassembled the merry-go-round to retrieve the detached toe, it was not possible to reattach it.
"His toe became caught in a gap on one side, and sadly that gap closed in on the opposite side as the equipment rotated, cutting his entire toe off his poor little foot," Jaeger's mother Ebony Verryt said in a Facebook post.
"Thankfully the friend we were with is a paramedic, so between him and I, we were able to stop the arterial bleeds and get him up to ED within minutes," she further wrote.
Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) said that WorkSafe has launched an investigation.
Ms Verryt told the outlet that Jaeger is recovering well and has handled the ordeal "like an absolute champion".
"He's more positive than we ever could have imagined. Thank God it was just his toe and not his whole foot or fingers or something like that. But it's also sad," he said.
Chief executive Ross McKim of the City of Greater Geraldton said the merry-go-round remains closed.