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Natural instinct and a lot of adrenaline allowed an off-duty police officer and her sister to lift an 800-kilogram mini-train engine from the body of a two-year-old trapped beneath it.
Carolyn Watson and sister Marie McKenzie were enjoying a miniature train ride with their children in Masterton's Queen Elizabeth Park on Monday when, just as the train was coming through a tunnel on its first circuit, it struck the little boy, who was sitting on the track playing with stones.
Mrs Watson, a police sergeant, said the train shuddered as it hit the boy before grinding to a halt. The scene was horrific.
"It was a frantic search trying to find him, then someone went to the front of the train and let out a blood-curdling scream," Mrs Watson said.
"I ran around and all I could see was this baby's head sticking out from under the grille. He wasn't breathing."
"All I could think of was I had to get that train off him, but I couldn't get it to budge by myself. I screamed out at Marie and somehow - I don't know how we did it - we lifted it up and shoved it back about two metres.
"The strength came from nowhere; it was that mother's natural instinct that just kicked in like an adrenaline rush. I knew if we waited any longer that little boy was going to die right there."
The child was in a serious but stable condition in Wellington Hospital's intensive care unit yesterday, with injuries that included a shattered pelvis.
At the time of the accident, his family were desperately searching for him, fearing he had fallen into the lake after wandering away from a picnic.
The Labour Department is investigating the accident and the train ride has been closed until engineers have assessed its safety.
Acting Sergeant Tony Matheson said police were not looking to lay charges.
- NZPA
