Neighbors help save toddler run over by mom's car in Egg Harbor Township

Neighbors of an Egg Harbor Township family are being praised for their heroic efforts after they freed a 14-month-old girl trapped when her mother accidentally backed over her with her car. Egg Harbor

News 12 Staff

May 22, 2014, 5:23 AM

Updated 3,847 days ago

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Neighbors of an Egg Harbor Township family are being praised for their heroic efforts after they freed a 14-month-old girl trapped when her mother accidentally backed over her with her car.
Egg Harbor Township police were called to the scene on Flatbush Avenue at around 1:30 p.m. Tuesday. They say 23-year-old Christina Rodriguez hit her toddler then continued in reverse, pinning her underneath.
Neighbors saw what happened and ran over to help. Police say they lifted the car between them to free the child.
Witnesses say the little girl was alert and crying; her mother shaken and distraught. The toddler was airlifted to Cooper Hospital with head injuries.
Authorities say the injuries were "moderate" and the little girl is now in stable condition.



Ashlee Silverstein, a mother of two in Egg Harbor Township, says her fellow neighbors are heroes. "I think that's amazing, amazing!" she says. "They reacted very quickly. They were on top of it."
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 2,400 kids in the U.S. are hit in child backover accidents each year. Most of the victims are 1 to 2 years old and the accidents usually involve family members.
No charges have been filed. The accident remains under investigation.