A child that was hit by a car whilst they were inside a tent, was only saved because he was inside a cot, it has been claimed.
The toddler was sleeping in his cot when a car veered off the road whilst driving at 90mph, smashing into the tent the two-year-old was in.
The owner of Newgale Campsite in Pembrokeshire, Wales, where the young child had been staying with their family, said that he “was saved purely by the fact it was in a cot”.
The child’s father, 44, was airlifted to hospital in Cardiff, with serious crushing injuries.
Two people remain in critical care from the injuries they sustained
Newgale Campsite
His mother’s arm was injured but was quickly treated and released.
Mike Harris, the campsite owner, said: “'Miraculously there was no fatalities. There are no life-threatening injuries but life-changing injuries of varying degrees.'The incident left a total of nine people injured, with two of them currently in a critical condition.
The child is believed to have survived because he was lying in his cot, The Sunday Times reported.
Harris, who runs the campsite with his wife Clare, said the blue Ford Fiesta was driving up to three times the speed limit when it ploughed into the family’s tent.
The car is believed to have been travelling from the village of Roch towards St Davids – renowned as Britain’s smallest city, when it drove into the campsite.
It then “veered off the road, turned three full turns and landed on its wheels’ before rolling into a tent belonging to a family”.
Six people were taken to hospital for their injuries to be treated, whilst another three sustained minor injuries.
Those being treated at hospital were taken to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen and Swansea’s Morriston Hospital.
Harris believed the Ford was going “80 or 90mph in a 30mph” zone.
He said: “I didn't realise a car could go so fast down the road”.
After veering off the road and crashing into a family’s tent, the car rolled onto three people.
“The campers managed to lift the vehicle 90 degrees to tilt it forward and rest on its side. They freed the three people,” Harris explained.
His wife added: “The car was speeding down the hill, realised it needed to slow down and tried to brake. It flipped and rolled several times, and crashed into the tent.
The incident in Pembrokeshire left nine people injured
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“There was a young child in the tent at the time, thankfully they are okay. It's a tragic accident that the police are dealing with, that's all we can say at the moment.”
His wife Clare told PA: “The car was speeding down the hill, realised it needed to slow down and tried to brake.
“It flipped and rolled several times, and crashed into the tent.
“There was a young child, a baby, in the tent at the time, thankfully they are okay.”
Many campers packed up and left following the incident.
Witnesses said the scene was “terrible to witness”, with one, Laura Kennard, saying that “I don’t think this will ever leave my mind”.
