A six-year-old girl whose finger was partially amputated by a faulty gate at a park often asks her family when it will grow back, her parents have said.
Three years ago, Elena Heidari was playing at Pelican Park, Clontarf, Queensland, with family members looking after her from the benches.
There was a 2cm gap where the gate entrance hinged to the post and, moments before someone entered the park, the girl, who was three at the time, put her finger in the gap.
The girl's finger was sliced off from the top to the first knuckle, and the woman who was entering the park started screaming after noticing that Elena was bleeding.
The girl's father Mahmoud Heidari then ran to the gate and saw part of her finger on the ground, so he called an ambulance which needed to be diverted due to a higher priority job.
But the desperate parent walked to the middle of the road with the girl and pleaded with the ambulance driver to help, so he took them to the Princess Alexandra Hospital, where doctors stopped her bleeding and stitched up the girl's injured finger.
Two days later, Mr Heidari contacted Moreton Bay Regional Council and was told that the gate had been replaced and the gap removed.
While the council apologised, Mr Heidari claimed they did not give the family any compensation, adding that they were not at fault.
The dad told The Courier Mail: "If something was not dodgy, why did you change the gate and the playground?"
Mr Heidari added that Elena gets "really upset" when she sees her finger, adding: "She asked me when is my finger getting fixed it or is it falling off?"
The family are now suing the council for $141,800 (£75,400), with Elena's lawyer Amelia Feachnie from Shine Lawyers describing the incident as "the saddest story for this little girl and her family".
She added: "City councils are responsible for large areas and the public parks that are provided to the community.
"She's asking when her finger will grow back and she doesn't understand why that is. Those are the kind of those things that can impact someone's self-esteem and confidence."
The Mirror has contacted Moreton Bay Regional Council for comment.
