A young boy waiting on the main road at Vaoala for his other siblings after school on Friday was tragically killed when he was hit by a truck traveling downhill towards Apia.
Commissioner of Fire and Emergency Services Tanuvasa Petone Mauga says the 14 year old’s injuries were quite severe and he had died at the scene of the accident.
“There were two in the truck but a bystander has been killed…a young boy who was on the side of the road,” he told Samoa Global News.
“We were told that he lived nearby and he was waiting for his siblings…” said Tanuvasa.
The Commissioner says the accident happened at that place where there is a bend on the main road, opposite the LDS Church at Vaoala.
“The truck with a trailer and excavator was coming downhill…” said the Commissioner.
Fire and Emergency Services road rescue team had to cut through the front of the truck, and the door, to get the driver stuck inside.
“The other guy managed to get himself out but the driver’s legs were stuck”.
The accident happened before 4pm on Friday afternoon, and first posted by Nah Fretton Folasā of Eyespy Radio 87.5 who reports witnesses saying the truck lost control before crashing into a cement fence.
Many posts on social media offer condolences to the family of a boy named Tovio, who is seen regularly walking this route in the afternoons when school is out.
The driver and one passenger are in critical condition being treated at the Motootua Hospital.
It is the second fatal accident within 36 hours in Samoa. A man in his late 30’s was killed in a car accident at the steep road in Leulumoega-tuai, in the early hours of Thursday morning.
Assistant Police Commissioner Auapaau Logoitino Filipo confirmed the Leulumoega accident was alcohol related.
“Na mafua lena faalavelave ona sa faasuaava uma i latou..”
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Rest in peace Tovio. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the grieving parents and family at this time.
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