Boy, 3, crushed to death by father’s Land Rover as he reversed on farm

A three-year-old boy died after falling from of the back of his father’s 4×4 as it was reversing, an inquest heard.

Evan Williams was crushed to death by the vehicle at Ceunant Farm, in Carmarthenshire, on October 21 last year.

Pembrokeshire Coroner’s Court heard how his mum Sian and older sister had also been in the Land Rover at the time of the horrific accident, while his father Dewi was behind the wheel.

The family, who lived on another farm a few miles away in Gorsgoch, Ceredigion, had been transporting sheep on the land at the time of the incident with a trailer attached to the car, the inquest heard.

Evan, who had recently started attending nursery at Ysgol Bro Sion Cwilt in Synod Inn, was sitting in the back of the vehicle when one of the rear doors opened and he fell out.

He fell onto the ground below and the vehicle continued to reverse over him, causing him to suffer ‘catastrophic injuries’ to his head and skull.

Police Sergeant Shane Davies of Dyfed-Powys Police told the court what he encountered when he arrived at the scene, stating that is was ‘obvious’ that the accident involved only one vehicle.

‘It was towing a trailer. It had been reversing backwards down a slope. Due to the nature of the manoeuvre, it would have restricted the view of the driver,’ he said.

‘There were obstructions on both sides. During this manoeuvre, for an unknown reason, Evan was crushed underneath the offside rear which resulted in catastrophic injuries to his head and
skull.’

Sergeant Davies added that while the vehicle had some ‘minor faults’ these would have been ‘unrelated’ and ‘not contributory’ to what happened to Evan.

He said the door had to have been physically operated in order for it to have opened.

‘I don’t believe the door was faulty,’ added Sergeant Davies.

‘In my opinion it had been securely fastened. For some unknown reason the door of the Land Rover had opened and the child fell from it or otherwise left the vehicle.’

A jury at the inquest returned a conclusion of accidental death.

Summing up the case, the coroner for Carmarthenshire, Mark Layton, consoled the Williams family, who were in tears at the back of the courtroom.

‘Thank you to Evan’s parents for attending this inquest today. This was a terrible tragedy and Evan’s family have my heartfelt sympathy,’ he said.

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