A young girl is fighting for life after being struck by a wheel which broke off a passing Land Rover.
The 11-year-old was struck by the nearside front wheel of the white Land Rover Discovery which had come loose as the car approached her from behind.
She is believed to have been walking along a footpath in Manby, near Louth, Lincolnshire, to a bus stop for a lift to school when the accident happened.
Land Rovers have been used extensively in Lincolnshire during the recent run of bad weather
Emergency services rushed to the scene to the junction of Tinkle Street, Carlton Road and Manby Middlegate shortly after 8am.
The girl was taken to Queen’s Medical Centre, in Nottingham, by the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance.
Lincolnshire Police say she has life-threatening injuries and closed Manby Middlegate, heading towards Louth, while they investigated the incident.
A spokesperson for East Midlands Ambulance Service said: ‘We received a call at 8.05am to an incident on Manby Middlegate.
‘The caller reported a road traffic collision involving one patient and one vehicle. We sent a paramedic responder, a paramedic on a Fast Response Vehicle, an ambulance and the Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire Air Ambulance. One patient was taken to Queens Medical Centre.’
A spokeswoman for the air ambulance said: ‘Our crew was dispatched to a collision in Louth at 8.14am. Our crew arrived on scene in just 11 minutes – a journey that by land would have taken nearly an hour.
‘Our crew were required to treat and airlift one patient – a female child, to Queen’s Medical Centre Nottingham. They arrived back at base at 12.15pm.’
The Land Rover Discovery appeared to be an older model which had modifications including large off-road tyres, a paneled rear cabin and spot lamps on the roof.
The vehicle involved was a white Land Rover Discovery – similar to this vehicle – but which had several modifications including large off-road tyres, a paneled rear cabin and spot lamps on the roof
Residents were horrified to hear of what had happened. A shopper at the Co-op store in Manby Middlegate said: ‘We are all in shock. It’s a terrible thing to happen in our lovely village.’
Meanwhile, workmen who were scheduled to carry out roof repairs at a nearby property had been unable to access the site. They went through the diversion to Legbourne and Reston.
‘It’s not a problem if it is such a serious accident’, said one of the flatroofers.
A spokesperson for Lincolnshire Police confirmed the schoolgirl is in a critical condition and said an investigation has begun to establish the causes of the collision and urged anyone with information or was a witness to contact them on 101 quoting log number 52 of today.
A police statement added: ‘An 11-year-old girl, who was the pedestrian, has been seriously injured and has been taken to QMC by the Air Ambulance.’