Many Kentucky residents who have children probably look forward to snowy days because it means their kids can go out sledding. Some people may even allow other children to sled on their property.
While this is a traditional winter activity that is a lot of fun for kids and adults alike, it is also unfortunately dangerous, and a family from Kentucky tragically found this out recently.
According to reports, the family’s 10-year-old son was being hauled in his sled by an ATV while the family was visiting a farm. The boy was seated in the sled backwards, meaning he could not see what was coming up next along the path.
Apparently, the driver of the ATV, who is a firefighter, struck a bump in the road, which caused him to lose control of the ATV and go off of the sledding trail. The sled and the boy hit a large pole, and the impact left the boy with a large crack in his skull and a serious traumatic brain injury. He also suffered several other broken bones. The most recent reports indicated that the boy has remained comatose since the accident.
There is no doubt this child and his family will need a lot of medical care and other support, both emotional and financial, in the upcoming weeks and months, assuming of course that the boy manages to pull through and survive this incident.
This case raises interesting legal questions, including whether the driver of the ATV now owes compensation to the boy and his family since he lost control of the ATV. The family may also have a case against the owner of the farm on a theory of premises liability, since the trail may have not been properly groomed for sledding.
Source: ABC 15, “10-year-old boy critically injured in sledding accident in Kentucky,” Alexandra Koehn, Jan. 22, 2018.
