In tragic news, a 13-year-old boy was killed after he and two friends, aged 11 and 12, were sleeping in an industrial bin near McDonald’s in Port Lincoln that was collected by a garbage truck as they slept.
The two younger boys miraculously escaped as the bin was being emptied on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula at 5:20 am this morning, but unfortunately, police have now confirmed that the eldest boy was killed in the tragic accident.
SA Police Superintendent Paul Bahr said all three boys were sleeping inside the skip bin in Edinburgh Street, Port Lincoln, when the truck driver made a routine garbage pick up.
“As the bin is being lifted, one of the boys has managed to scramble out,” he told reporters.
“However the other two appear to have been tipped over with the bin as it’s been lifted up into the truck.”
While the second boy managed to escape, the 13-year-old Aboriginal boy died at the scene after suffering serious injuries, despite police and paramedics attempting to revive him.
According to police, the 12-year-old friend of the deceased frantically tried to alert the truck driver that his friends were inside the skip bin which was being emptied.
Supt Bahr, the police officer in charge of the Eyre region, praised the young boy for trying to get the truck driver’s attention.
“From what I understand, the boy who managed to get out quite early started banging on the door of the cabin to alert the driver,” he said.
“We haven’t gone into great detail with the boys given their very young age and it will take some time to get that detail out.”
Bahr added that a number of avenues would be examined in a report for the coroner, including an investigation into why the boys were sleeping inside the bin.
“I think the background as to how they have ended up in this industrial bin and sleeping in this bin is really something that is going to take some time to understand,” Supt Bahr said.
“It will be part and a strong part of the Coronial investigation that we have now begun.”
He added: “It’s tragic across a whole number of levels.
“Just one of the levels of tragedy of this is why these three children thought they needed to be sleeping in the bin on what was a pretty cold and wet night.
“That’s one of the avenues of the inquiry that we will be taking during the coronial investigation.
“The boys had somewhere to stay. They had beds they could sleep in.”
Police are preparing a report for the coroner.
