Connect to share and comment
Home » Regions » Europe » Russia
January 9, 2012 13:48
Subscribe to Talia Ralph on Facebook
Add Talia Ralph to your circles

Urban sinkhole kills Russian toddler

An 18-month-old boy fell to his death when a sinkhole gave way.

Sinkhole china 090112Enlarge
A Chinese worker inspects a sinkhole in a street in Beijing. A Russian toddler fell to his death in a similar sinkhole on Sunday. (Stringer/AFP/Getty Images)
What do you think?

An urban sinkhole that opened in the pavement swallowed a toddler in the western Russian city of Bryansk on Sunday.

The boy was on a walk with his mother when a part of the sidewalk collapsed, BBC News reported.

The boy's father, a traffic police officer, was working near the area at the time of the accident, and rushed to the scene in time to pull his wife out of the hole to safety. 

Tatyana Didenko, 26, had grabbed the edge of the pavement, which saved her life. The one-and-a-half year old boy, who reports are identifying as Kirill, was thrown from his stroller and fell into the sewer below. 

Remains of Kirill's clothing were found by search teams, but his body was not discovered until late Monday afternoon, 3.5 miles from where he fell in, BBC reported. 

According to emergency officials, a drainpipe below the sidewalk may have burst, pushing water through the ground and creating the hole, RT News reported. 

Bryansk regional governor Nikolai Denin told Russia 24 TV that a large part of the city's infrastructure is not in prime condition. 

"We have to start rebuilding things because otherwise this could happen again," he told the TV station, according to the BBC. 

Investigators have opened a criminal manslaughter case.

The region's governor has promised compensation to the Didenkos, according to RT News. 

More from GlobalPost: Hit-and-run toddler dies 

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/russia/120109/urban-sinkhole-kills-russian-toddler

.

Featured Slideshow

EU Basil Art Show