Taxi Crash: 'Devastated' Father Flies To US

The father of a British woman who had part of her leg severed by a New York taxi says the family is "devastated" by what happened.

Sian Green, 23, suffered the leg injury when a yellow taxi mounted the pavement in the centre of New York and struck her.

"We are a really close family we are all devastated by what has happened," her father Jason told the Leicester Mercury.

"We don't know what to say.

"We just want to be at our daughter's side right now," he said, adding that he is flying to New York to keep a bedside vigil.

He added: "She is in recovery now, and they have had to amputate what's left of her foot."

The cab hit a cyclist and then ploughed into Ms Green in front of a fountain outside the Rockefeller Center at 49th Street, news reports say.

Ms Green was walking down the road with her friend, eating a hot dog she had just bought nearby, when she was hit, according to the New York Post, which cited witnesses.

Among those who helped the victim was also celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz, who records his talk show in a nearby studio.

Dr Oz said emergency medical crews were already treating the injured woman.

A plumber who was working in the area, David Justino, used his belt to make a life-saving tourniquet for Ms Green's leg.

Mr Justino said: "I just grabbed my belt, went over, lifted her up, put it on and held it.

"From the shin down, (her leg) was gone."

He added: "I just worried about the blood, there was too much blood."

Mr Justino told the New York Daily News that she "was conscious the whole time, the poor thing. I wished she would have passed out".

A street vendor reportedly raced to put her severed foot on ice. She was then transport to the hospital.

Sergeant John Buthorn of the New York Police Department said: "The circumstances are still under investigation, whether it was some sort of rage or an accident.

"It looks like her leg or part of it was severed during the accident."

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said on Wednesday night that Ms Green remained sedated.

Police said the taxi driver had been issued with a summons for being an unauthorised driver of the vehicle.

They added that the incident remains under investigation and the driver could face other charges.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "We are aware of a traffic incident involving a British national in New York City.

"Staff at the British Consulate General in New York are providing consular assistance at this difficult time."