Lawnmower Accident Kills West Michigan Girl

As a followup to our April 20, 2011 blog about the importance of lawnmower safety, we are again stressing the urgency of operating lawnmowers with the utmost of care, especially when young children  may be present. In a tragic accident, a 5-year-old West Michigan girl died May 17, 2011 when her father ran over her with his riding tractor.  The father of the girl said he did not see his daughter until his machine hit her and ran over her. The Kent County sheriff’s office investigated the accident and says that the child may have run out of the house to play during the evening hours, and then tripped in the grass, making it difficult for her father to see her. The sheriff’s office stated that the man may not have been paying attention as he was operating the tractor, was looking in another direction, and he”never noticed her until the tractor was on top of her.” Another report states that the tractor may have rolled sideways or backward over the child, which may indicate a failure of the lawn mower manufacturer to install adequate safety systems, such as rollover protection or a “no mow in reverse” system, that may have contributed to this accident.

The attorneys at the Law Offices of Henry Hanflik have extensive experience in handling lawn mower-related accidents and injuries. If you or a loved one have suffered a serious injury as a result of a defective lawn mower, contact us at 888-905-4632 for a free consultation.