Escalator Handrail Traps And Kills 4-Year-Old Boy In China
In a recent horrific incident, an escalator handrail trapped and killed a 4-year-old little boy at a train station in China.
The unidentified boy was playing on the escalators unsupervised at Chongqing’s Hongqiaohegou station on Thursday, October 8, when he became wedged beneath the handrail at approximately 11:00 a.m.
A mother had apparently brought her 4-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter with her to the station, and then failed to supervise them while she was in the ticket hall. The boy started playing on one of the nearby escalators, when he fell and became trapped. His chest then became wedged between the bottom of the handrail and the ground, according to the Singapore Seen.
4-year-old, left unattended, was killed after getting trapped under escalator handrail in Chongqing pic.twitter.com/OJre2yYnL5
— CCTVNEWS (@cctvnews) October 9, 2015
The train station personnel responded to the incident immediately by shutting off the escalators in hopes of saving the boy. The staff then worked diligently to remove the little boy from the escalator. The child was then rushed to a local hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
The Chongqing Rail Transport Authority said on its Weibo account that they were investigating the incident and are offering assistance to the boy’s family.
“We are deeply regretful and heartbroken over this case!” the statement read. “We also would like to remind all passengers to look after their young children and old folks when travelling, be more alert, and avoid similar accidents!”
This is the latest escalator incident to take place in China within the last few months. As the Inquisitr previously reported, a mother was left dead after she was swallowed by the escalator when a mettle bar gave way at at a shopping mall in China’s Hubei province.
Surveillance footage showed Xiang Liujuan, 30, riding the up-escalator with her 2-year-old son. As she neared the top, a metal bar started to give way, causing the woman and the toddler to stumble. As the metal flooring caved in, Xiang was able to shove her son into the arms of a shopping assistant. Another shopping assistant tried to pull Xiang to safety, but sadly, she was pulled in and swallowed by the escalator.
Heroic Woman Saves Her Son’s Life After Freak Escalator Accident (VIDEO) http://t.co/2QyPdB8tSH #bubblegumalley
— bubblegum alley slo (@bubblegumalleys) July 27, 2015
The surveillance footage of Xiang’s tragic incident quickly went viral, with many people questioning why the shopping mall was so negligent when it came to the safety of their customers. Maintenance workers had just serviced the escalator at the Anliang department store in Jingzhou in the central province of Hubei, but forgot to screw the metal floor into place, an unconfirmed report stated at the time.
“Why didn’t the staffers stop customers at the entrance to the machine or just turn it off?” one user wrote. “The department store is definitely responsible.”
“This is heartbreaking!” User Maqi Yaduo wrote. “Why didn’t store employees cordon off or shut down the escalator? The department store definitely bears responsibility for this.”
Other users who witnessed the viral video hailed the mother as a hero for her last actions to make sure her son was okay.
“I was appalled when I saw her sink and at the same time felt the greatness of maternal love — the mother wasted no time pushing the child out when it happened,” wrote one user.
“When I saw her fall in I felt awful – but at the same time I felt how strong a mother’s love can be – during such a sudden event, the mother’s first reaction was still to push the child away from the gap,” user “I am a Promising Youth” said.
[Photo via Shutterstock]
