An eight-year-old child was injured after being hit by a car driven by his mother. According to Police spokesman Dwight Mitchell, the boy was riding his tricycle near the driveway of their south Louisville home Monday night when his mother pulled out and hit him with the vehicle. The mother told police that she did not see her son.
The boy was taken to the hospital with serious injuries. Police, however, said that no charges are expected to be filed against the mother.
Last month in Mississippi, a seven-year-old girl died after she was backed over by a car driven by her mother. The coroner said that the mother hit her daughter after the latter ran behind the vehicle. The mother didn’t realize her daughter was outside their home and never saw her.
In 2015, a similar story happened in Louisville when a father accidentally backed over and killed his son. On February 13, Brian Bayers was getting ready to take his son to daycare. He warmed up his truck and did not know that his son walked right into the side of the vehicle. His son was hit by the front wheels of the vehicle backing up.
Statistics
- At least 50 children are backed over by vehicles every week.
- Over 60 percent of back-overs involve a larger vehicle such as SUV, truck, and van.
- In over 70 percent of back-over accidents, a parent or relative drives the vehicle.
- Children below five years old are at the most risk of back-over incidents.
- Since 1994, at least 500 children have died from being backed over.
How to Prevent Back-over Injuries of Deaths?
Back-over accidents are one of the most common non-traffic incidents that could injure or kill kids. These usually occur when a car is backing out of a driveway or a parking lot and there’s a blind spot, which is the area behind a vehicle where the driver cannot see even when looking back and using his rear and side views mirrors correctly.
These accidents, however, can be prevented if we will be more cautious and careful. Please observe the following safety tips:
- Walk around the vehicle before backing up your vehicle. Check all around your car for people walking especially your children or pets, if you have any. Children may end up behind your car without you noticing. If you are in a parking lot, be careful and see if other vehicles are backing up behind you.
- Install a reliable backup camera. Use this device to backup and drive reverse safely. This serves as your monitor to detect if anything or anyone is in your path before backing.
- Hold your child or be sure that someone is guarding them. When backing up your vehicle, don’t let your child stroll around, run away, or be away from your sight. Have your family member ensure that they are inside your home or far away from your garage.
As a Kentucky Accident Attorney, I am saddened by the deaths and injuries resulting from back-over accidents. Every time I hear news about parents accidentally backing over and injuring their children, I’ve felt the pain these parents are going through. How could they possibly hurt the ones they love? But as I have mentioned these accidents are preventable. If we will observe safety precautions, we can definitely protect our loved ones.