Toddler dragged by car recovering

A Fond du Lac toddler is in fair condition at Children's Hospital in Wauwatosa, after she was hit by a vehicle and dragged 70 feet.
 

Two-year-old Erin Konen was crossing 2nd Street Wednesday morning, when a car driven by an 88-year-old woman hit both the child and her mother.

"There's some people screaming and there's someone under a vehicle."
 

It happened right in downtown Fond du Lac. What had returned to a normal traffic scene by Thursday afternoon, on Wednesday, was the scene of chaos and incredible courage. 9-1-1 dispatchers received at least a dozen calls from witnesses.

Caller: "Please answer, oh, oh my God."
Dispatch: "Fond du Lac County 911 where is your emergency?"
Caller: "Oh my God. Oh my God. Some, a car just ran over a child, corner of Second and Main."
Dispatch: "How old is the child?"
Caller: "I don't know, she's underneath the car. Please send an ambulance quick."

Dispatch: "Fond du Lac County 911 where is your emergency?"
Caller: "Second Street and Main. A little girl got hit by a car, she got ran over. We need an ambulance."
Dispatch: "Okay, how old?"
Caller: "I'd say two years old."

Two-year-old Erin Konen and her mother were hit by the car. Erin was dragged underneath it.

"There was a little child's head in front of the back wheel. The whole body was underneath the car," said Lydell Weir, who witnessed the accident.

Weir immediately ran to the little girl's aide. He and two others grabbed the back bumper and discovered their hidden strength.

"I think there were three of us and we said we gotta get her out from underneath, so we literally picked the car up and set it over three-four feet off to the side, cause then the child was completely exposed," said Weir.

Konen now has a CaringBridge page which gives updates on her condition. It says she suffered a "level 4 liver laceration," but is healing well. Her family wanted to give their heartfelt thanks to the people like Lydell, who may have just saved her life.

"Now you think about it, it's weird. All for a reason I guess. Just in the right place at the right time."

Erin's family members say they are hopeful she will be out of the hospital over the weekend.

The driver claims she did not see Erin and her mother. She was ticketed for inattentive driving and failure to yield the right of way to a pedestrian. Her license will be under review.