On a farm in the Tottington area of Bury, a three-year-old boy was killed when he was hit by a tractor.
North West Ambulance Service requested assistance from Greater Manchester Police just before 12:45 p.m. today (Saturday, July 16), after an ambulance was signalled to stop by a motorist on Rochdale Old Road transporting a badly injured child.
The boy was tragically declared dead by paramedics before he could be transported to the hospital when officers arrived.
Investigations soon revealed that the boy’s critical wounds were caused by a collision with a tractor on farms off Bentley Hall Road.
The tractor’s operator is helping police with their investigations, and the scene at the farm is still in situ as Bury CID investigators and HSE colleagues try to determine what exactly happened.
On Rochdale Old Road, a scene was set up so that preliminary investigations could be made. The blockade has now been removed.
Greater Manchester Police urge that the family’s privacy be respected during this tragic time as specialised officers are assisting the boy’s family.
Chief Inspector Ian Partington, of GMP’s Bury district, said: ‘This is a heart-breaking incident that has seen a young boy tragically lose his life and my thoughts go out to his family and loved ones who will be utterly devastated by today’s events.
‘Despite his family flagging down an ambulance while driving him towards hospital quickly as they could, the boy sadly could not be saved after the best efforts of paramedics; I can’t imagine how distressing this was for those involved.
‘We are working to ensure that a full investigation is carried out, and the farmland where we understand this incident to have occurred remains cordoned off to allow our investigators and partners from the HSE to conduct thorough enquiries to establish exactly what has occurred here.’
Strangers have flocked to social media to wish the boy’s family well, calling the crash “tragic,” “awful,” and “heartbreaking.”
At the moment the boy’s relatives alerted rescuers about his condition, there was reportedly a second, unrelated collision on Rochdale Old Road, adding to the tragedy.
As officers arrived at the scene to provide emergency services, a Greater Manchester Police vehicle also collided with another vehicle.
No police officers were injured, however several passengers in the car were brought to the hospital as a precaution, according to GMP.