A mother whose world was shaken when her five-year-old girl was hit by a dump truck fears her daughter may have permanent brain damage.

"It's been so hard,” said Cathy Green. “It's been the worst thing my family's every gone through."

Green says her daughter, Maddie MacDonald, was struck while walking to catch the school bus with her seven-year-old brother Alex and cousin along the side of the road on Highway 4 in Monastary, N.S., on Tuesday.

She and Maddie were about to cross the road when the incident happened.

“The truck came by and I heard the other two kids I had with me scream,” said Green. “(Maddie) didn't scream. She was about ten feet behind us in the driveway laying there, cold and unconscious."

Maddie was airlifted to the IWK in Halifax. She’s in stable condition, but has multiple cuts and a collapsed lung.

But Green fears her daughter might never be the same.

"Right now she has a few spots on her brain that are bleeding,” said Green. “They're concerned about brain damage, maybe permanent. We're not really sure at this point."

Maddie was released from the intensive care unit Tuesday night, where she received a blood transfusion and was attached to a breathing tube. Doctors have told the family it could be weeks or even months until she's released from the IWK.

"Every time she's awake she's screaming in pain, trying to pull out the cords and the tubes – so it's really heartbreaking to watch your baby like that,” Green said.

Green says her daughter has always been a sweet little girl full of life, who even enjoys pretending to be a doctor and care for others.

“She's just amazing,” said Green. “Such a fighter, and she's shown us that."

While her daughter recovers, Green says support from first responders, IWK staff and community members has been overwhelming.

A GoFundMe page is helping the family with expenses as they stay in Halifax, away from their home near Antigonish, as Maddie recovers.

"There's just so much support, and so many people rooting for my baby girl. It's so nice to see," said Green.

"We just want her to get better."

Green says Maddie has a MRI scheduled for Thursday, which will tell the family more about the extent of her injuries.

Green also has a message for parents to be careful.

“This could easily have been anyone else’s child getting on a school bus, and it’s the worst thing you ever could imagine,” adds Green. “I wouldn’t want anyone to go through this. And I would just say, for everyone to be careful. We were careful, and it still happened.”

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Amanda Debison.