Little Girl Disfigured By Carnival Ride

11 year-old Lulu Gilgreath suffered horrific injuries after being scalped by a carnival ride on Saturday.

Photos of the little girl went viral this week after family shared them to Facebook. Lulu slipped off of her seat on the ride, and her long, red hair ended up wound around the ride’s spinning mechanism. According to her father, she suffered for five to ten minutes before a mother stepped in and stopped the ride.

Aushanay Allen shared this photo she snapped of Lulu just before the tragedy:

The mother, Jolene Cisneros, realized what was happening to Lulu and stopped the ride herself.

“It was still spinning. I had to stop it with my hands and turn it to the point where it was to the platform,” Cisneros said. She then comforted Lulu while waiting for her family and emergency services, “It was still spinning. I had to stop it with my hands and turn it to the point where it was to the platform.” Lulu’s family has hailed Cisneros as a hero, and are focusing on helping Lulu recover from the accident.

Lulu has had three surgeries, and the ride severely damaged the child’s eye muscles, meaning she may never see again. Additionally, doctors do not know if Lulu’s scalp will die as a result of the trauma. If it does die, Lulu will not be able to grow her hair back.

Her family has begun a Facebook campain, #supportforlulu, where they have asked for hair donations via locks of love. They have also started a GoFundMe page to benefit Lulu.

Our hearts go out to Lulu, and we send our well-wishes to both her and her family.