Dad’s bike helmets plea after son, 12, seriously hurt in crash with bus

YOUNGSTERS are being urged to wear helmets when cycling after a 12-year-old from Dundee was seriously injured in a crash with a bus.

Ricky Rae Jr was let out of hospital three days after the accident which happened as he was riding home from school.

The youngster’s bike accidentally left the pavement on Strathmartine Road near the junction with Dunavon Gardens at around 4pm on Monday.

He was thrown against the windscreen of an Xplore Dundee bus, causing it to smash. He then fell to the ground and ended up in the middle of the road.

Ricky, who was not wearing a helmet, was taken to Ninewells Hospital with a bad cut to his scalp, a broken right wrist and cuts and bruises to his face.

His dad, Ricky Sr, 46, said: “He was not wearing a cycling helmet at the time.

“If Ricky had been wearing a helmet then he wouldn’t have been so badly hurt.

“Kids are taking cycle helmets out of the house, but they then put them in a school bag as it is not seen as cool to wear them.

“We want to use this situation to stress to kids they need to wear helmets while cycling.”

Ricky junior is a pupil at Baldragon Academy in the city and his father wants to hold an assembly or project at the school to highlight the importance of wearing a helmet.

A council spokesman said: “The school has been in touch with the family to offer support.

“Bike skills sessions have been offered in the school and they are looking to build on this in the future.”

Police Scotland and an ambulance crew attended the crash scene and the road was closed for a short time.