A mum has been left devastated after her seven-year-old son lost his finger while climbing over a metal security fence.
Faye Johnston's son Jacob was playing outside with his sister Eva-Rose, nine, and their friend Brook Skee-Simmons, nine, when the accident happened on Leam Gardens in the Wardley area of Gateshead. The 31-year-old said Jacob, then six, tried to climb over the fence while out with the girls.
She said she was inside Brooke's home with her mum Chloe Skee, 32, when they heard Jacob screaming in pain. When they reached him, they found that his little finger on his right hand had been sliced off by the metal spikes on top of the fence. Faye rushed him to hospital where he had the remaining bone amputated.
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Faye, who lives in Gateshead with her two children, said Jacob is now suffering from nightmares and he won't look at his hand.
She said: "As soon as I heard the screaming I went running up the street towards him. No matter how fast I went I wasn't getting to him quick enough. My friend's daughter reacted amazingly under pressure. She grabbed a hold of his hand and dragged him to us.
"I keep having flashbacks of it happening. He didn't cry, he was screaming. I just remember him being so scared and saying 'I don't want to die'. In the hospital he said 'I have had a good life, I don't want it to be over'. I told him 'You're not going to die'.
"I know in the grand scheme of things it's just a finger and he's going to be ok but it's been really, really hard. I keep on breaking down all the time, I'm devastated."
Faye said the ambulance service told her it would take an hour for them to attend, following the incident on the evening of July 26. She said she rushed him to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Gateshead herself and he was later transferred to the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) in Newcastle.
Faye said the hospital gave her two options - to reattach his little finger with the use of a metal pole or amputate the remainder of his bone. She said that if she reattached his finger he would lose partial use of his hand and would be unable to bend it. She decided to follow the recommendations of doctors and amputate it as it would allow him the full use of his hand.
Faye said she was at her friend Chloe's house on the day the accident occurred and their children had gone out to play together. She said that the security fence is located between Chloe's next door neighbour and a green area where there used to be a house.
Faye said she has contacted Gateshead Council about the security fence as there is no warning signs and she does not understand why it has been put there. She said she is concerned about the lack of signs and safety measures near security fences in the area.
The residential child care officer said: "I understand that he's partially to blame for this accident, I do understand that.
"Since it's happened I drive around and I just see these fences everywhere. There doesn't seem to be any regulations in place, they are just put anywhere. None of them have warning signs. I feel there's not enough regulations.
"A bottle of bleach has a 'do not drink' warning sign on it. I feel a lot less people would attempt to drink bleach then climb a fence. Children don't see the risk in a residential area."
Faye said that you can walk around to the other side of the fence where Jacob was injured and so she does not understand the purpose of it. She said: "I'm fully aware there may be a reason for that fence but it's not stopping access to another kind of area, you can access both sides of the fence, it doesn't make any sense.
"You can walk around it to go to the other side of it, it doesn't seem to serve any purpose. I could understand a high security fence with spikes being around something that could cause death if you entered into it"
Faye has set up an online petition on Change.org as she would like to see stricter regulations implemented in regards to security fences and safety measures put in place if they are used. She added: "I feel strongly that these fences should be regulated."
Gateshead Council has told Chronicle Live that the fence is used as a "deterrent" for antisocial behaviour and a full investigation is being carried out.
A spokesperson for the local authority said: "Gateshead Council are aware of the incident which happened on 26 July, the incident was reported to the council on 1 August. A full investigation is taking place, this commenced on the 3 August with an inspection of the fence. The fence which separates Leam Gardens and Wreken Gardens acts as a deterrent for antisocial behaviour which may occur where an area of land connects two roads."
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