Boy terribly burned after fall on treadmill

ROCHESTER HILLS, Mich. (WJBK) - A Michigan mother is shocked at the severity of her son's injuries by a popular piece of exercise equipment in many homes.

Nine-year-old Cayden Thorton suffered second- and third-degree burns from a treadmill.

He'd been told not to play on the machine, but he turned it on and was thrown off.

He got the burns when he was trapped between the wall and the whizzing rotating belt, which rubbed off layers of his skin.

"I never expected this to happen," says his mom, Amanda Machado. "I know you can get hurt on a treadmill but I never thought you could get burns like that."

She says Children's Hospital told her they see injuries like this all the time, so she wanted to help make sure other parents knew this was possible.

It's recommended that if you have a treadmill and children in the house, that you remove the key and keep it out of reach so it can't be powered up when you're not around.