Family remember ‘sweet’ toddler killed in horror accident at rugby club
A two-year-old boy killed by falling sports equipment on the weekend has been identified.
The boy and his father were at the Old Bar Rugby Union Club, Old Bar, north of Newcastle in New South Wales, at about 2pm on Sunday.
A scrum machine, a weighted piece of equipment used to practice rucking, fell on the toddler.
The father desperately tried to save his son and called for help. Witnesses assisted with CPR.
The toddler suffered significant injuries and died a short time later.
A family friend organising a fundraiser for the family on GoFundMe identified the “sweet” boy as Oliver Koch.
“The Koch family are well loved in our community and our hearts are shattered for them after the devastating loss of their sweet boy, Oliver,” organiser Kerrie Johnson wrote.
Police are preparing a report for the coroner and investigating how the incident unfolded.
The matter is being treated as an accident, rather than a criminal investigation.
The fundraiser has so far raised more than $26,000 of its $30,000 goal.