Distraught dad cradled injured son in his arms

Sixyear-old boy in serious condition after incident that has led to renewed road safety calls

Residents of a Fife village have said that new traffic calming measures cannot come soon enough, after a young boy was involved in a collision with a van in Aberdour.

The six-year-old, who is understood to be from Dalgety Bay, remains in a serious condition in Edinburgh Royal Infirmary following Tuesday’s incident on High Street.

Eyewitness accounts suggest that the boy left the kerb to cross the road without his parent and was clipped by the corner of a blue Mercedes Sprinter van at around 6pm.

Though speed is not understood to be a factor in Tuesday’s incident, the collision has highlighted long-standing road safety concerns in the community.

With Fife Council intending to introduce a 20mph speed limit on the route in February, Arthur Lloyd, chairman of Aberdour Community Council, said that action is needed.

“That corner has always been an accident waiting to happen,” he said. “A child’s life is more important than anything, as far as I’m concerned.

“I don’t care about moaning drivers, I don’t care about people having to walk an extra inch and I don’t care about people having to slow down. I want to prevent injury and death.”

Witnesses have told The Courier that the boy’s father had to be persuaded to let go of his son as he cradled him in his arms, to allow the youngster to be placed in the recovery position before emergency services arrived.

Ambulance crews treated the boy before taking him to hospital, while police officers examined the scene and the van, closing the busy stretch for four hours. The 46-year-old driver was not injured.

With the incident occurring during the evening rush hour, resident Joyce Dryburgh said new traffic calming measures could only improve safety on the route. “I know that some people don’t like speed bumps but, for the greater good, they make things safer for everyone,” she said. “I just hope that the young boy who was hurt is all right.”

Sergeant Jim Henry, from the Police Scotland road policing unit, said: “We are working to establish the full circumstances surrounding this collision.

“We’ve already spoken to a number of witnesses but are urging anyone who has not yet come forward to get in touch.”

Anybody with information is asked to contact police on 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously by calling 0800 555111.

Picture: David Wardle. The corner where the accident took place has been described as “an accident waiting to happen”.