Girl scalped by carnival ride shares inspirational message

It has almost been one year since Elizabeth "Lulu" Gilbreath suffered a horrific injury while on a carnival ride in Nebraska.

Gilbreath, then 11, was enjoying her first carnival ride during a Cinco de Mayo festival when her hair became caught in the ride's machinery and her scalp was ripped off.

The freak accident was met with an outpouring of sympathy from around the world.

Gilbreath spoke to WOWT Wednesday and discussed how her recovery is going.

Since the accident, Gilbreath has endured two head surgeries, a surgery on her eye, three skin grafts and almost 30 blood transfusions. She's now dealing with a staph or MRSA infection. Some good news: Her beloved curly red hair is growing back on one side of her head.

While Gilbreath faces more surgeries and likely permanent scarring, she told WOWT, “My scars don't define me. Nobody's scars should define them."

The family says they have two pending lawsuits.