Girl survives punctured trachea

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn., Feb. 25 (UPI) -- A 6-year-old student at an elementary school in Tennessee fell on a pencil when she tripped over her shoe lace and put a hole in her trachea.

The girl survived even though an ambulance did not arrive at the Barkers Mill Elementary School in Nashville for 25 minutes after the call, WSMN-TV in Nashville reported.

Montgomery County EMS Director Wes Klein said the two closest ambulances were responding to other calls at the time of the accident Friday. That put the emergency in the hands of an ambulance station 9 miles away from the school.

The person who made the first call also said the girl had hurt her eye and did not mention her punctured trachea, Klein said. He said the response will be investigated.

School officials said the girl was carrying the pencil when one of her laces became untied.