8-Year-Old Boy Seriously Injured In Accident With Washing Machine

A boy is being treated at a hospital for what are described as “severe” injuries after a tragic accident involving a household appliance.

Emergency crews were called out to the 3600 block of Olympic Avenue in Northeast El Paso around 9:20 p.m. Wednesday.

When crews arrived, they found the 8-year-old boy with his arm stuck in a washing machine. The washer was running at the time.

EMS rushed the 8-year-old to University Medical Center. Police told the ABC-7 crew on the scene that his injuries were severe, though authorities could not confirm reports that part of the boy’s arm had been severed.

Thursday evening the boy’s mother, who asked not to be identified, spoke with ABC-7. She said she could not directly comment on the incident but had this message to parents: “As a mother, please everybody. You can never pay too much close attention.”

The mother said her son remains in the hospital.

ABC-7 spoke with Dr. Miguel Pirela-Cruz, the head of the Texas Tech Department of Orthopedic Surgery. He’s UMC’s go-to guy for the kind of complicated surgery required to reattach limbs.

“Children can actually tolerate this kind of trauma a lot better than the adults sometimes, and they also have the capability of regenerating tissue better than adults,” he said.

Dr. Pirela-Cruz said accidents with appliances are not uncommon. “When it comes to large machinery, kids are always curious and unfortunately sometimes curiosity gets the best of them,” he said.

Investigators with the EPPD’s Crimes Against Children unit are looking into the incident with the washing machine. That’s standard procedure with cases of this nature and no charges have been filed as of this point.