SHIN POND, Maine — A 4-year-old boy was found unconscious Monday evening in what police are describing as an ATV-related accident, according to officials.
The boy, from Searsport, was operating a Yamaha four-wheeler about 200 feet from his grandfather’s home when he apparently attempted to drive up an incline, according to a news release from the Maine Warden Service. It appears the ATV rolled backward and landed on him, the release stated.
The child’s helmet was found near the machine; witnesses saw him wearing it earlier in the day.
The boy was taken by ambulance to Houlton Regional Hospital and then by LifeFlight to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, according to the release.
No names are being released at this time. The incident is being investigated by the Maine Warden Service.
4 years old??? Misprint??
I hope he makes a full recovery.
Hide those keys, folks.
I agree with bigkid I hope that this was supposed to be a 14 year old? I hope hes going to be ok…
I hope that this was indeed a misprint in regards to the childs age. I pray this boy, whatever his age…a speedy recovery. I pray for all of the individuals involved. This surely was not a deliberate act of child endangerment, but more than likely an oversight on how inquisitive a 4 year old can be. I am also sure that the adults involved are already punishing themselves far more than any public opinion forum could do. Also, please keep in mind that only minimum information is provided in this article. Lets go easy on the finger pointing until more information becomes available. I am sure the people involved are traumatized enough. All thoughts need to be with this boy at this time.
WLBZ2’s website also says 4, & has slightly more info.
http://www.wlbz2.com/news/article/209861/315/4-year-old-boy-suffers-internal-injuries-from-ATV-accident
Wishing him a complete and speedy recovery!
4 years old is a pretty little boy to be operating a 4/wheeler on his own, don;t you think??—I surely hope this child will be all right.
My sons when they were 4 years old operated their 4 wheeler, a 50 scrambler, on their own, helmet properly secured and chest protector on, and always under our supervision, now they are 6 and 9 and very responsible with their wheeler.
Just because you were/are an irresponsible parent doesn’t mean everyone is permitted to be so idiotic!
Oh that’s right, we should just shelter our children and make them live in a bubble until they are adults and then all will be well and no accidents will ever happen. Maybe your naive views are what is idiotic here. I would much rather teach my child at a young age how to do something like this safely and with adult supervision and the proper safety gear so that by the time they are teenagers and adults they have a firm grasp on it and a respect for the dangers involved. Sounds like a much better plan than sheltering them from it, then when they are a teenager and a buddy has an ATV or dirtbike and offers a chance to try it out. Kid has no clue what he’s doing, but not wanting to lose face, he hops on and punches the gas, only to end up in an accident due to inexperience, most likely at a higher speed. People that think they can prevent all the bad things in life from happening by living in a bubble amaze me sometimes.
My son has also had his own wheeler at a young age and he is more responsible with it than most adults and he is nine. Like your sons, he is always supervised but either myself or his grandparents. This doesn’t make us idiotic or irresponsible, I believe it is the opposite. We are teaching our boys to be responsible and to know their limits. I bet our boys will be smart, responsible young men. Best of luck to the little guy, hope he gets better quickly.
I am always amazed at how unkind so many folks comments can be when they certainly do not have all the facts and how quickly they are to point fingers and condemn. Shame on you. Right now the only thing that matters is this little 4-year-old and praying he will recover. His injuries are very serious and I for one am on my knees praying for all of them at this extremely difficult and emotional time.
God bless and be with this little boy.
I have two myself, and they are both atv riders and drivers, and have been since a very young age. Both started on small wheelers when they were 3. Protective gear, a governer for speed, and parental controls for shutting the atv down if needed.
I do not blame parents/grandparents for this accident. It is what it is folks, an accident.
Take care family, and I pray all goes well for you. Please do not blame yourself. It was not your intention for this happen, nor did you expect for it to happen, and you need to remember that at this emotional time.
Adults are responsible for the safety & well being of their children. A four year old child is not responsible for anything.
A toddler trying to operate an ATV? Surely not with his parents blessing. Hope he recovers.
Common sense would dictate that these adults did not allow a 4 year old child to ride this by himself on purpose. Sounds like the little boy decided to do this all on his own. Proof of this is the fact that they found him unconscious…Maybe the grownups involved didn’t put the keys away where the little boy couldn’t reach them. There is NO parent/grandparent on this earth that is perfect and can think of every possible scenario to prevent children from getting hurt.
Common sense isn’t so common anymore.
The whole helmet part seems like he rides it .
I guess the BDN was in the mood to print this story about an injured tot. But was not in the mood Monday to print the story about the one in Presque Isle who fell out a second story window and was also Lifeflighted to Bangor in critical condition. (And yes, the BDN knows about it).
Huh.
Wait everyone who says the child is to young on here are from Portland , mid 20s , come up here and ride once a year and think they know what they are doing. i hope all is well with they boy and his family … four is not to young to ride ………
How many young kids have been hurt? or hurt someone else. Yes I think he was to young for anything but a slow battery powered one. The fact he had a helmet and was saw wearing it indicates to me that he was allowed to ride it. Maybe just not when an adult was present. At 4 my son was never out of my sight when out side.
your son was never ever out of your site at age four. ya right please… i bet your a big texter
I do not know how to text and I did not have a 4 wheeler in the driveway for him to use. My son is 13 I will not let him use my girlfriends sons 4 wheeler he is also 13 . We have a different Ideas of parenting.
prayers
Re: trucks, cars, snowmobiles, ATVs.
It might have been a misprint, but I think I read that a 4-year-old kid flipped over on one of those ATV things. Would you let a 4-year-old kid drive anything — even if the kid were rich and you were the only heir to his estate?
If you want to read every possible excuse for going through the ice on a snowmobile, they are posted here at least 4 months out of the year. For the other 8 months we read every week of our friends and neighbors who have killed themselves on ATVs. It’s really no more news than the fact that the sun comes up each morning.
Do you sometimes get the feeling that this is no more than a forum to share heart-rending stories of how this or that wonderful, loving, cousin or neighbor (after a few beers and without helmet or seatbelt) wrapped some kind of motorized vehicle around a tree or sunk it in a half-frozen pond?
Name-calling and a sophomoric form of one-upsmanship runs a close second.
Those who believe in the efficacy of prayer, might get back on their knees and pray that children stop driving these things. It would be a kind of preventive maintenance.
If I wanted to stop Maine kids from driving any kind of a vehicle, I would tell their parents that Obama owns the company and was getting rich manufacturing them.
The humble Farmer
Hi humble Farmer…is that really you??? Miss you!
4 year old kids should not be riding a 4 wheeler in the first place! I think the lawmakers should instate a law requiring a certain “reasonable” age to be able to legally drive one.
Just heard from family member that this little boy has passed away. Praying for them tonight…it has to be devestating for them. Such a tragedy.
oh my god no….
…..that is just awful, so sad:(
Whatever happened to 4 year-olds riding bicycles? My boy at 4 was playing with his trucks in the dirt!
My heart and prayers go out to the family.
We can only hope and pray for a full recovery of an innocent child.
People so lack common sense!
RIP Little Guy.. <3
Instead of bashing the adults responsible for this child, why doesn’t everyone take a step back and realize that a child’s life has been lost… Regardless the circumstances, this innocent child’s life has been taken and no amount of proving all of your “common sense” to each other will justify why it happened. How about a little sympathy for his family and the boy’s sister…? Take a walk in someone else’s shoes and look at things in a different perspective. It breaks my heart to see these ignorant comments about something so tragic… Pitiful.
Nope. out of staters dont laugh at mainers when they read stories like these
I can’t imagine what this family is going through right now. Sending you strength, love and courage to make it through your loss.
I heard the little boy died last night. I heart goes out to the family.
Seriously People!?!?! Isn’t this situation hard enough for the family and Friends of this little boy?! Stop being so quick to judge-I would recomend that everyone take a minute and hug their children and hold them tight-because life can change in a second. What if it were one of your children? Stop and think how easy it is to be walking in a parking lot, your child slips his hand from yours and runs in front of a vehicle and get hit? Or how about getting into a car accident and losing one of your kids? Accidents happen and God is the only one who understands.