Influencer shares warning after accidentally running over son
A mom influencer is sharing a warning for other parents after she accidentally ran over her 1-year-old son with her vehicle.
Kelly Hopton-Jones, a pediatric nurse practitioner, opened up in an Instagram post Wednesday, saying that day felt like any other "normal" day for her and her family.
Hopton-Jones said she was driving out with her 3-year-old daughter Lily to go get donuts, while her husband Brian Hopton-Jones was staying at home with their son Henry, 1.
"[Brian] helped Lily into the car and was waving goodbye between our car and Henry, who was in the garage," Hopton-Jones wrote in a text post. "In a matter of seconds, our son was run over by our car. I was driving."
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration states that such vehicle accidents aren't uncommon. Overall, the agency says distracted driving killed about 3,208 people and injured 315,167 individuals in 2024.
Hopton-Jones describes the incident as a "very tragic accident" and a "true nightmare" that she and her husband are still "trying to understand."
Hopton-Jones declined to be interviewed by ABC News.
In her social media post, she shared safety reminders that she said she and her husband are taking to heart.
"Non negotiable to hold or hold hands with young children around vehicles. Do not assume they know or will stay where you last saw them," Hopton-Jones wrote. "Even when you are not distracted. Even when you are not rushing. It can still happen in the blink of an eye."
According to Hopton-Jones, Henry was transported to an emergency room after the accident, and "X-rays of his legs, chest, and neck are all normal," while a "CT scan shows no injury to his organs or spinal cord" and a "neurological exam has been reassuring with no signs of head injury or impairment."
The mom of two said Henry is on the road to recovery after suffering fractures to his pelvis and abrasions but is otherwise OK.
"A true miracle," she added.
