Mom behind the wheel in van accident that killed son, 1

The van that ran over an 18 month old toddler in Zuid-Beijerland Thursday afternoon, was driven by the boy's 41 year old mother, AD reports. The accident happened in Zwartsluisje, Hoeksche Waard, south of Rotterdam. The mother was reversing the van in front of their home when the boy was hit. Emergency services did everything in their power to resuscitate the little boy, but to no avail. He died on the spot. Grandfather Arie, who lives next door to his son and daughter-in-law, is shattered. "My daughter in law had to go", he told the newspaper. "She thought that she had forgotten something and drove back a bit. Then it happened. The across the street neighbor still tried to resuscitate him. It's terrible." "I saw the boy every day." Arie said to the newspaper. "He could not talk yet, but had his way to make everything clear. Just a lovely boy." The yard where the tragic accident happened is equipped with a playground, including a slide a swing and a trampoline. The parents had put up an iron fence and gate to keep their son and his 3.5 year old sister off the busy road. Mayor Servaas Stoop of the Korendijk municipality had a meeting with emergency workers in the Zuid-Beijerland fire station after the accident yesterday. "It is awful when someone is killed in an accident, but when it comes to a child it is extra touching." the mayor said. "And when you hear the cause, words and understanding fail. All emergency workers did their utmost. For these people it is very disappointing that this was to no avail."