Always double-check for small children when backing out of a driveway.
Underage Relative Accidentally Hits and Kills 11-Year-Old Boy in Northwest Side Driveway
According to a KSAT News report, an 11-year-old boy was accidentally run over in his driveway when his teen relative attempted to drive a family vehicle without a license.
Police reported the incident occurred at around 4 p.m. at a home on the 5400 block of Sunlit Brook on Saturday, March 23rd. Obaidullah Sailani, 11, was standing in the driveway when a teen relative attempted to drive the family vehicle, though he did not have his license. He mistakenly put the car in drive when he had meant to reverse and struck the 11-year-old standing in front of the vehicle. A family member who was sleeping inside at the time was alerted to the accident and rushed Obaidullah to the hospital, where he later died of his injuries. SAPD reported that family members were being fully cooperative with the ongoing investigation.
Did You Know?
3 children have been run over and killed by vehicles in parking lots in Texas this month.
Driveway Safety for Toddlers and Young Children in San Antonio
Children under 5 are incredibly vulnerable to being hit by vehicles in driveways and parking lots.
With Easter weekend fast approaching, it’s important to review driveway and pedestrian safety with your children. Drivers have a responsibility to watch for child pedestrians, but people make mistakes — children are often run over by a parent or other relative who simply didn’t know the child followed them outside. Keeping your children safe involves driver and child education.
Let’s take a look at driveway safety tips from Lifespan that you can implement to keep your kids safe this holiday weekend.
Keeping Children Safe from Driveway Back-Overs and Front-Overs
Roughly 50 children are hit by vehicles leaving driveways per week. To avoid this potentially tragic mistake, follow these steps:
- Supervise — Small children often don’t want their parents to leave and follow them out of the house. Assign someone the task of monitoring children when one or more adults are leaving to ensure they stay in the house.
- Educate — Driveways are not safe places for small children to play. Teach your child that driveways are dangerous and keep play areas away from driveways.
- See — Drivers should walk completely around the vehicle before backing out or driving forward to ensure no children followed them or are hiding behind the vehicle. Roll windows down, and don’t play any music while backing out to ensure you can listen for a child or someone warning you. Note that SUVs and trucks have larger blind spots and hit more children than smaller vehicles as a result. If your vehicle doesn’t have a backup system, consider getting one installed to maximize visibility.
Holidays often see an increase in child pedestrian accidents. If your child is hit and injured or killed in a parking lot or driveway in Texas, you may be entitled to compensation.
Was Your Child Run Over in a Parking Lot/Driveway in Texas? Call Carabin Shaw.
Carabin Shaw has represented parents of injured children across San Antonio for over 30 years. We’re a trusted name in San Antonio because we put our clients first.
If a negligent driver hit your child, you may be entitled to compensation for:
- Medical expenses,
- Pain and Suffering,
- Anxiety/PTSD,
- Wrongful Death,
- Disfigurement,
- and More.
Call the team that cares for a free, no-obligation case evaluation at 800-862-1260 or use the live chat to set up an appointment with one of our child injury attorneys. We look forward to serving you.
Contacting a Carabin Shaw attorney is free and does not obligate you to work with the firm.