Taiwan boy, 9, dies after getting hit by car while running marathon with his father

A father's time with his son at a marathon in Taiwan ended in tragedy when the nine-year-old boy died after a car collided with him while they were running.

Had signed up to accompany his father

The accident occurred on Nov. 24 morning at the town of Erlin in Taiwan's Changhua county, Taiwanese media reported.

A road in the town was closed for the charity marathon.

The boy had signed up for the event to accompany his father.

He was the eldest child.

Following the accident, no signs of a heartbeat or breathing were detected and the boy was rushed to a hospital.

He was pronounced dead about an hour later despite resuscitation efforts.

Driver said he did not see any traffic control

The 50-year-old driver who allegedly caused the accident said he did not see any traffic control at the intersection where the collision occurred.

The driver also said he did not see the boy at all and only stopped after the accident occurred.

He also stressed that he had only been driving at 10kmh to 20kmh as there were many people around his car and added that he had visited the boy in hospital afterwards.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the marathon's organiser said they were deeply saddened and regretted what had happened, according to ETToday.

They are also assisting the family in the matter.

The spokesperson added that traffic control personnel were deployed at the road where the participants were scheduled to run to control the flow of vehicles and that the relevant intersections were also closed with road warnings.

It is still unclear why the car entered the road used for running and collided with the boy, the spokesperson said.

Police are investigating.

Father returned to the scene of the accident

SETN reported that the boy's heartbroken father returned to the scene of the accident a day later on Nov. 25 where he shouted, "The competition is over. We are here to take you home."

He was accompanied by several relatives.

Teachers and students remember the boy as a polite child with a lively smile who was also a member of the school's football team.

Top image via TVBS News/YouTube