Boy, 4, dies after being hit by bus outside Margate hospital

A four-year-old boy walked out of a hospital in Kent and died after being hit by a bus, police have said.

Police were called following a report of a crash outside the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate at about 16:00 BST on Thursday.

The boy has been named locally as Zaahir Jan.

He was taken inside the hospital but was confirmed dead a short while later. His next of kin has been informed.

Kent Police said the boy left the hospital on foot before the crash happened.

Eyewitness Gillian Murphy, a patient at the hospital, told the BBC: “It was very busy with cars, and the bus was having trouble getting through.

“The bus driver was very focussed when a little lad came skipping out. Next thing I knew, he was under the bus.

“He was alive, I could see his face. We went to pull him out. The driver then reversed in the shock of the situation. It went straight over him and he was lying there.

“Every circumstance that could have been against the boy was. It was a complete freak accident.”

Ms Murphy added that the boy’s mother was distracted with another child.

Tracey Fletcher, chief executive of East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “We are very saddened by yesterday’s tragic incident and send our sincere condolences to the family.”

The bus, a white single decker vehicle, was travelling near the entrance to the A&E department, police added.

A spokesperson for the bus company Stagecoach said: “This is an ongoing investigation and we are currently co-operating with the police.”

Anyone who witnessed the crash, or who has CCTV and dashcam footage of the incident, is urged to contact the force.