The 4-year-old suffered a broken jaw and is the process of recovering.
Dashcam video has captured the harrowing moment a little girl fell out the back door of a church bus in Arkansas.
Ryan Ciampoli was driving behind the vehicle when its rear exit door suddenly swung open, with a 4-year-old clinging to the handle.
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The child tried to hold on, but quickly crumpled to the ground, where she laid, blocking traffic.
Ciampoli slammed to a stop and ran to the child, his training as an EMT immediately kicking in.
He bent over her and was thankful to see she was moving, but she was badly hurt.
“She had a gash on her forehead and her teeth were broken in. It was very hard to see her in such pain,” he said. “She hit it hard right on her face, so her lips were bloody and bruised.”
She had also broken her jaw.
The girl was identified as Emily Rose Turner of Arkansas.
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He picked up the girl and cradled her in his arms as someone else called for an ambulance.
Social media critics chided him for moving the girl, but Ciampoli said he had no choice.
“This was the one time you do because of the moving traffic,” he said.
Authorities are investigating what caused the door to swing open.
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