Small Girl Dies as Church TV Lands on Her
A 7-year-old girl has suffered fatal head trauma when a large television set fell on her during a visit to Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Colusa, Calif.
The tragic incident took place earlier this week and was witnessed by some of the young girl’s siblings as they played in a conference room within the church.
The little girl, who police have not identified, was with one of her brothers when the two tried to move a television stand with a large TV on it. The TV tumbled off the stand and hit her on the head.
The girl was knocked unconscious, according to the local sheriff’s department. Paramedics were called to the scene and rushed the child to the hospital, but it was too late. The young girl was later pronounced dead.
The mother, who volunteers regularly at the church, according to parishioners, was not in the room when the accident happened. The girl and her three siblings were accompanying their mother to the church. The little girl is said to attend school at Our Lady of Lourdes. Her father, also unidentified, is said to be a well-known doctor in the local community.
One fellow parishioner expressed remorse for the family: “I'm crushed for them. It's very upsetting,” she told CBS Sacramento.
Her father also happens to work at the hospital where the little girl was taken by paramedics.
The accident, which happened Tuesday, has unfortunately become a fairly common tragedy among children. In their most recent report, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued warnings and guidelines to parents about the dangers of falling furniture, televisions, and appliances in the home and elsewhere.
The CPSC estimates that between 2006 and 2008, of nearly 39,000 people hurt by falling furniture, TVs, and appliances, 49 percent were children between one and nine years old.
According to the Center for Research Injury and Policy, most injuries happen to children younger than seven years old. They recommend strapping all TVs to a stable stand or to the wall.
