Woman claims book return box clipped off tip of her finger

MOUNT DORA, Fla. - A Florida woman says part of her finger was cut off while returning a book at her local library. Now she might take legal action.

As an avid reader, Barbara "Bobbie" Haverly, of Mount Dora, said she has used the metal book return slot before. Last month, she tells FOX 35 News it left her permanently disfigured.

The director of the Library called 911 and tried to help Haverly while they waited for paramedics.

"I’ve got a person that needs ice," a caller told the 911 operator. "She’s cut part of her finger off. We need an ambulance as soon as possible."

"When I removed my finger from the swinging metal stainless steel door, my fingertip was missing, and the blood was coming out very fast," Haverly said, "and I noticed my fingertip was stuck inside the book drop."

Her husband, Paul Haverly explained, "It was trapped in the swinging door. She couldn’t extract it."

"We’ve saved the fingertip, but they need to get here as soon as possible."

Haverly rushed to the hospital, but doctors weren’t able to reattach part of her finger. She said it’s having a big impact on her active lifestyle and has stopped her from working. Now, she said she would like to be an advocate and try to prevent this* from happening to someone else.

"We have two young granddaughters who go to that library with us, and I was just so shocked thinking my little two-year-old granddaughter, if she were to drop a book off there, her whole hand could have been cut off."

Haverly’s attorney has already reached out to the City of Mount Dora. The city would not comment on this incident because of a potential lawsuit but has confirmed that the library director called 911 that day.