Toddler crushed by theme park train; Driver cleared of negligence

TDT | Manama

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An amusement park worker has been acquitted by a court after a three-yearold boy was crushed by a miniature train at Prince Khalifa bin Salman Park in Hidd. The court ruled that the incident was not the driver’s fault but the result of the child being left unattended.

The ruling, issued last week, found no negligence on the part of the driver, an African national. The boy, who had been chasing the train, was discovered trapped beneath its final carriage nearly 45 minutes later. His injuries left him 20 per cent permanently disabled.

The train was travelling at a low speed of 3 km per hour. The court accepted the driver’s account, confirming that he had carried out all necessary safety checks before the ride began. Defence lawyer Abeer Abbas argued that her client could not have seen the child approaching from behind. A senior park employee corroborated this, stating that crowd control staff were only deployed on busy days and none were present at the time. Prosecutors had accused the driver of negligence. However, a Civil Defence report concluded that the accident was not caused by any wrongdoing. Investigators established that the child had wandered away from his family, who were sitting near the swings.

The boy’s father testified that he was unaware of the incident until a park guard notified him. Witnesses confirmed the driver was only alerted to the child’s condition after the ride had ended.

In delivering the verdict, the judge ruled that the responsibility rested with the adults responsible for the boy’s supervision, including his father, aunt, and grandmother. The court subsequently dismissed all charges against the driver, declaring him not guilty.