Toddler, 7, Dead After Being Accidentally Crushed To Death By Bulldozer Driven By Boy's Father

A seven-year-old boy from Michigan was killed on Thursday, Jan. 27, after a bulldozer that was being driven by his father accidentally ran him over while they were doing chores in the afternoon.

The incident, which happened in the Maple Grove Township around a hundred miles west of Detroit City, found the seven-year-old boy falling off the trailer that was being pulled by the bulldozer, causing him to be run over by the vehicle, according to the Detroit News.

They were working with heavy machinery on their property at the time, and the equipment seemed largely code-compliant. Emergency services rushed to the area, but the boy was declared dead by police officers once they arrived at the scene, Battle Creek Enquirer reported.

State Police Lieutenant DuWayne Robinson has said that they are investigating the incident as an accident, as the bulldozer that the farm uses is known to have had problems in which it would stop and reverse its direction all by itself.

They have also said that, while the case is still being investigated, they do not believe that the father was under the influence of any drugs or alcohol during the incident and that there was no intent to harm his seven-year-old son on his part.

This is not the first time a bulldozer has killed a young child by accident. In 2020, an eight-year-old boy in Albany, New York who was riding an ATV came into contact with a bulldozer, causing it to get run over and for the boy to die, according to ABC affiliate News10.

“It’s a horrible tragedy,” Albany Sheriff Craig Apple said at the time. “My heart goes out for the family and all the first responders who had to be there. My advice tonight is [to] go home and hug and kiss your kids, because you just never know.”