BOY, 4, CRUSHED BY METAL GATE IN HOLIDAY TRAGEDY
CHILD KILLED IN TERRIBLE ACCIDENT ON VISIT TO SEE FAMILY IN ITALY
A BOY of four from Manchester has died after being crushed by a metal gate while on holiday in Italy.
Angelo Quirino, from Crumpsall, was visiting family near Rome when the tragedy happpened.
His uncle and some neighbours are said to have gone to help when they heard screams but found the youngster unconscious under an iron gate on Saturday afternoon.
He was dragged from under the gate and cradled by his grandmother, according to local reports.
The incident happened at a property the family had hired in the coastal district of Anzio, about 40 miles south of Rome, three days into the family trip to visit Italian relatives.
An air ambulance was scrambled to the scene and medics are said to have attempted to resuscitate the youngster for more than 45 minutes to no avail.
The boy, who was due to start school in north Manchester next month, reportedly suffered injuries to his head and collarbone.
Italian media report that Angelo was on holiday with his mother, brother and little sister.
They were staying in a rented property in the residential district of Marechiaro.
His father is said to have taken the first available flight from Manchester to Italy when he learned the news.
An investigation is under way into how the 200kg (450lb) sliding iron gate came off its rails and toppled onto the child as he played football with his older brother.
Local police have cordoned off the villa as the investigation continues.
It was the first time the villa had been hired out, according to reports.
Dad Amedeo Quirino and mum Roberta are believed to have moved with Angelo and his older brother to Manchester in 2015, having previously lived in Anzio. No-one was at the family home in north Manchester last night.
But one friend of the family, who is part of Manchester’s Italian community, told the M.E.N.: “I feel sick. It absolutely breaks my heart. I have a son the same age and Angelo would have been going to school in a couple of weeks.”