Girl, 8, killed by bakkie

902 A crime scene expert takes pictures of the scene on 7th street in Linden where 3 men tried to hijack a woman after a chase with the police that started in Robindale. 190208. Picture: Bongiwe Mchunu

902 A crime scene expert takes pictures of the scene on 7th street in Linden where 3 men tried to hijack a woman after a chase with the police that started in Robindale. 190208. Picture: Bongiwe Mchunu

Published Jun 20, 2014

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Cape Town - An eight-year-old girl was knocked down and killed in Milnerton on Thursday as she and friends tried to cross a busy road.

The accident happened at 3.45pm at the Koeberg Road-Ixia Road intersection, as the girl and two other children tried to cross it. A bakkie struck the girl, but the two other children were unharmed.

The Cape Argus, arriving shortly thereafter, witnessed dramatic scenes as paramedics worked to save the girl’s life. As the paramedics tried to resuscitate her, a woman huddled close by, praying aloud.

A couple, identified by bystanders as the girl’s parents, were also nearby. The girl’s mother was in a state of hysteria – screaming, crying and smashing her cellphone on the tarmac. She tried to force her way to where the child lay and had to be restrained by bystanders.

Police spokesman Colonel Tembinkosi Kinana said a case of culpable homicide had been opened.

“The name of the girl cannot be released at this stage until the next of kin have been notified,” he said.

Last month this newspaper ran an article on the high number of pedestrian road accidents and fatalities in the city. This came after a spate of incidents, specifically on May 16 when five pedestrians were knocked down on a single morning.

City Traffic spokesman Richard Coleman identified Vanguard Drive, the N2, R300, Lansdowne Road and Govan Mbeki Drive as hot spots for these types of accidents.

Coleman said that many pedestrians misjudged the speed of vehicles: “Sometimes accidents involve speed, especially on roads like the R300 and Govan Mbeki Drive (the old Modderdam Road), roads that people shouldn’t be crossing. They think they have time to cross, but from a distance you cannot judge the vehicle’s speed and that is when an accident happens.”

Cape Argus

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