Parents are being warned to stop their children playing on out-of-bounds sites after three firefighters had to free a boy whose thumb was stuck in a drain.
Daniel Bacon, aged seven and from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, was playing near his home when his thumb got caught in a storm drain on Saturday afternoon.
Firefighters freed the boy and he was taken to hospital. He will find out on Friday if his thumb can be saved.
Watch manager Paul Vasper said Daniel's injuries were "horrific".
"I've been to many incidents over the past 21 years where children have got their hands stuck in things - fence posts, vending machines and so on - and although they are distressing, they are fairly harmless," said Mr Vasper.
"But this was quite horrific to see and deal with."
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The cover to the storm drain had been taken off and turned over, making it unstable. When Daniel started playing with it, the cover fell, trapping his thumb.
"It ripped his thumb open," said Elizabeth Bacon, Daniel's mother. "It was very intense and actually very flat. We'll find out on Friday whether he'll have lost his thumb but I could have lost a child and I thank my lucky stars that I haven't."
Mr Vasper added: "More than 80 children needed our help last year and ended up going to hospital for non fire-related incidents.
"If children know they are playing with things they know they shouldn't be, then don't play with them. Parents also need to explain what they can and can't do."
The area was fenced off at the time of the accident.
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