A 4-year-old Indiana boy is dead after being run over by a 3,200-pound lawn roller. Kevin Eugene Bontrager was playing outside at the family home in Topeka, Indiana April 7 when he ran behind the roller as his father backed up. LaGrange County Dispatch received an emergency call about the incident around 5:05pm. EMS responded minutes later but the boy’s injuries were too severe. LaGrange County Sheriff’s is investigating the incident.
There have been a string of heavy equipment injuries recently due to the Spring season approaching. Obviously, some of these injuries can be avoided by proper safety precautions and training, however some cannot be avoided to do product design and defect. As the country is discovering with the Toyota Recall, often times companies find it in their financial best interests to ignore or hide defects in order to ensure financial success of a product. When this occurs, serious liability results due to the manufacturer’s or designer’s knowledge of the danger and failure to rectify the hazard.
