Advertisement Local girl gets tongue stuck to flag pole No 'sinister triple dog dare' Share Shares Copy Link Copy

An East Kingston girl is doing OK after she got her tongue stuck to the flag pole in her front yard.Maddie Gilmartin, 12, was helping her dad in Thursday's snow storm. On a whim, she decided to touch the flag pole with her tongue and she got stuck.In this incident, there was no "sinister triple dog dare," just some innocent curiosity.It took her seconds to realize it was a big mistake."It just kind of popped into my head, 'Hey what would happen if I stuck my tongue to a flag pole?'" Maddie Gilmartin said. "At the moment, I was like, it will come right off."But it didn't. "I'm stuck here in the middle of our yard just trying to get help," she said.With her dad snow plowing at the end of the driveway and her mom inside, Maddie Gilmartin tried pulling."I see her standing at the flag pole, her arms are waving," said Maddie's dad Shawn Gilmartin. "I'm not sure what's going on until I got closer.""I was just like, did I really just do that to myself, like did I really just do that?" said Maddie GIlmartin."She tried to pull her tongue off of it as soon as it happened and that's what made it bleed," said Shawn Gilmartin. "I had my hands cupped, I was blowing, breathing on her lips and tongue."Maddie Gilmartin was stuck to the flag pole for 15 minutes. Her parents were able to get her free by using some warm water while waiting for EMS to arrive. Then they took her to the emergency room.She'll be fine but said her lips feel like like they've been stung by a lot of bees. "I'm still sore, and I’m still taking Motrin and cold compresses," Maddie Gilmartin said. The swelling in her mouth is expected to last about six weeks.Maddie Gilmartin said she learned her lesson. "Just think before you do something."