Girl, 12, Died Under Wheels Of Van On Zebra Crossing In Rush Hour

Girl, 12, Died Under Wheels Of Van On Zebra Crossing In Rush Hour
Low section view of a girl crossing the road
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Low section view of a girl crossing the road

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A 12-year-old girl died and an 11-year-old was seriously injured when they were hit by a van on a zebra crossing in the rush hour.

They were hit in Milnrow Road, Shaw, Greater Manchester, at 4.30pm on Tuesday.

Police found the 12-year-old under the wheels of the van, but couldn't save her. The injured girl is being treated in the Royal Oldham Hospital.

Local people said they had been warning that the crossing is dangerous for several years. Seven people have been killed on that stretch of road in the past seven years.

Within hours of the collision, hundreds of residents had signed a petition to impose new safety measures at the crossing. There are also plans for a protest at the scene this Saturday.

Tommy Boyce, 35, landlord of the Weavers Answer pub overlooking the crash scene, who organised the petition, and said the crossing had lost its school-run lollipop patrol in recent months.

He said: "People around here are devastated because the crossing has been a problem for a long, long time but nothing's been done about it and now this has happened.

"We've been here for four-and-a-half years and there's been numerous incidents, including two fatal incidents now, and you wonder what it's going to take before someone decides it's not safe."

Another resident, who did not wish to be named, said: "I saw them taking the girl out from underneath the van and they seemed to be really taking their time with her as they put her onto the stretcher.

"She had the neck brace on and everything so I thought 'at least she's in the right hands now and she's going to be all right'. To hear she's died is just awful.

"When I take my kids across that crossing I'm always very wary because it is dangerous because you get drivers who have just come off the motorway and won't realise it is a built up area.

"It's always surprised me it's only a zebra crossing rather than proper lights and although it's too late for that poor girl we need to stop something like this happening again."

Anyone with information is asked to call the Serious Collision Investigation Unit on 0161 856 4742.

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