NYC nurse struck, dragged by dump truck prevailing over devastating injuries
NEW YORK, New York (WABC) -- Lauren Pine was crossing the street with her bike when the unthinkable happened.
A dump truck making a right didn't see Pine when the vehicle struck and dragged her down a street until bystanders called to the driver to stop.
"I was awake," Pine said. "I knew my leg was under the tire. I remember screaming."
The Memorial Sloan Kettering nurse's left leg had to be amputated when she arrived at Bellevue Hospital.
Pine also suffered a trauma burn to her right leg, opened her hip joint, shattered her pelvis and had her bladder ripped off of its lower state.
She stayed at Bellevue for five days and then was transferred to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medicine for her right leg.
"She ended up here because she had large surface wounds that were similar to a burn," said Dr. Palmer Bessey, of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/ Weill Cornell Medicine. "In other words, the skin has been destroyed."
During her two months there, Pine had seven surgeries to repair the degloving injury that is usually seen when people get hit by a car -- the skin and underlying fat gets ripped off of the muscles underneath.
"We were worried about infections," Bessey said. "We worry about nourishment, nutrition, doing the wounds the proper way, supporting her to give her the best chance of healing her wounds."
Pine's rehab has been challenging, but is progressing day-by-day with her prosthetic, crutches and walker.
"My biggest challenges now are staying upbeat and having supportive people around me," she said.
Dr. Bessey is one of her supporters, and knows she has a strong mindset to overcome this unfortunate situation.
"She had her ups and downs like everybody would," he said. "But she had a lot of spunk to her."
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