Lucky escape for toddler hit by reversing car

An infant boy has cheated fatal injuries "only by the grace of God" after being partly crushed by a car reversing out of a Rotorua driveway.

A family member failed to see the 15-month-old toddler while leaving the property in Devon St, Hillcrest.

The child received stitches for several wounds at Rotorua Hospital and was discharged in a stable condition yesterday.

No charges have been laid.

The boy is the third child to be struck in a driveway in the area since Christmas, prompting a child safety group to recommend a nationwide campaign on driveway safety.

Neighbours reported a flurry of running and screaming on Thursday afternoon before a large cluster of emergency vehicles arrived to treat the child. Three fire engines were called in the expectation that the car would have to be lifted off the toddler.

Senior Sergeant Mick Lander said the boy was "incredibly lucky" to escape with his life.

"The child has some injuries, which are not too bad, but really, he is still here only by the grace of God.

"The incidence of children being injured, often fatally, during this vehicle movement when the driver's field of vision is impaired is too common.

"It just takes some common sense. You can't be careful enough in checking your blind spots, and double-checking where your kids are."

The parents of the child were too shaken to speak to the Weekend Herald yesterday.

NZ has one of the highest rates of driveway deaths in the world, with a child hospitalised every two weeks and four killed every year after being run over. Child safety group Safekids said this was partly due to the large size of New Zealand properties. Long drives were common, and often ran alongside the house or a space where children played.

Safekids director Ann Weaver said the increase in incidents was due to the season. More children played outside at this time because of the warmer weather and adults were more likely to be inattentive during the busy period.

Ms Weaver said the simple messages of driveway safety - checking where children are, and getting an adult to supervise them - needed to be reiterated all over the country.

"What worse tragedy could a family have to go through? The impact is life-long."

A group established to focus solely on driveway safety had achieved some success in the Auckland region, said Ms Weaver. There had been no driveway injuries last year in Auckland.