Updated: Thu Dec. 25 2008 19:19:07

ctvbc.ca

It was a tragedy that could not have come at a worse time. A family in Coquitlam, B.C., is grieving the death of a young girl who died while playing in the snow at Christmas.

The four-year-old girl was sledding on a hill in her family's Westwood Plateau townhouse Wednesday when a pickup truck came around the corner and she was hit. She died shortly after in hospital.

Neighbours say it took paramedics 30 minutes to arrive at the scene of the incident, and they are left wondering whether the girl could have been saved if the emergency response had been quicker to react.

On Wednesday, ambulance services were dealing with a flurry of calls. They included a number of code 3 calls -- which are considered life threatening. Some of the callers had to be put on hold because there just weren't enough staff to handle the volume.

The national standard for emergency response calls is nine minutes, and on the best days, B.C. paramedics take 14 to 15 minutes to respond,

CTV has been told that this week's poor weather conditions prevented paramedics from getting to the scene any faster.

Just blocks away from where tragedy hit, families spent Christmas Day sledding down hills at a fenced-in park. They can't believe what happened to the little girl.

"It's horrible, it's terrible, especially on Christmas Eve,'' said Brian Martell, a Coquitlam resident.

"What can you do,'' Martell said. "She's just out to have fun and the driver doesn't know what's going on. That's why we like to come here and that way the kids are safe and there's no traffic, no cars running around."

Other Coquitlam residents were equally shocked.

"There are no words for that right? It's an eye opener for many young kids and families,'' said Aletha Low.

Even the more seasoned sledders can't believe what happened to the little girl

"That's pretty scary, being hit by a truck,'' said Jordan Wojcik.

With a report by CTV British Columbia's Reshmi Nair

Please Add Comments(16)

Bob The Builder
Absolutely terrible news. My thoughts are with the family.

Always remember to wear a helmet when sledding and always scope out your path before going down the hill.

westguy
why wasnt this poor girl at a park and who was watching her when it happened? This again is a preventable accident i feel so sorry for her survivors as this tragedy did not have to happen may god rest her soul.

jersey
My sincerest condolences to the girls family but this should be a lesson for others. Don't be sliding onto a road because accidents like this do happen quickly.

cindy
My heart and my prayers are with this family
I pray God wraps them in HIS wings bringing healing comfort and strength that only HE can give in such a Tragic ordeal
Your Angel is already alive in HEAVEN.
My heart is heavy for your family in this hour
C Rowe from Ontario

carlo
in regards to the 4yr old girl lost her life sledding, where was the parent? or person to be watching over this child be4 this happened? if this girl was left alone to be sledding outside the yard and to be exposed to oncoming traffic, i put the blame to the parents, not to the hardworking bc paramedics which are public servants which infortunatley are left with many split decisions to respond to people in aid and have to decide which is life-threating or just need help, i do feel sorry about this accident , furthermore if i knew my child's life was in danger and if the ambulance was going to me more than 10 mins late , i would of tooken the child up myself to the nearest hospital instead of relying on the ambulance.

Tom
Do I read this correctly? They were sledding on a ROAD?? Yes, the poor family (I can't imagine their grief) but what about the poor driver, too?? Who would expect sledders on a road (if I read this correctly)?

Dan in Orleans
How sad that the little girl was allowed to play in such and unsafe area. A tragic Christmas, indeed.

Brian in Nanaimo
my heart goes out to the family of the child and the driver of the truck as well. Sad news.

Marlin
How typically Canadian to pass judgement rather than simply offer condolences and support.

My heart goes out to the family. God Bless.

beatrice
I live in Port Coquitlam (Harbour St) except for two
residents nobody shovels the snow from the sidewalks.
There must it be like half a meter of snow so we have no choice but to walk on the road and that includes children.

jeremy
i'm sorry for her death but this is what happens when parents don't look after there children
the parents should be charged for careless endangerment
letting a 4 year old play on a snow hill so close to a road

Logan
beatrice wrote...
I live in Port Coquitlam (Harbour St) except for two
residents nobody shovels the snow from the sidewalks.
There must it be like half a meter of snow so we have no choice but to walk on the road and that includes children.

That's what snow plows and caterpillars with snowblades are for. Even our city has a SNOW BUDGET, for money to be spent on getting the necessary sidewalks and roads shoveled. If your city has no such budget, then I hope this is a wake-up call to your city's management to have such a thing. Kids shouldn't be on the road anyway in the middle of winter! I grieve for the family, but do parents have no common sense anymore?? Let alone a FOUR YEAR OLD GIRL! Hell, I wouldn't let my Four-Year-Old go into my own BASEMENT without me being present! It just goes to show the lack of responsibility parents show these days.

BHO
Stephen Harpers fault, right?

cindy
A terrible terrible accident. i have six kids and are NOT ALLOWED TO SLED NEAR ANY ROAD OR STREET. i am so sorry for the loss of these children on christmas holidays such as the ones who perished in sask and nanaimo bc. sad sad days.

Zach
Good job on the parents and keeping an eye out for their daughter. Hopefully their daughter will be keeping an eye on them up above. My condolences to the family, let this be a very important lesson to be learned!

JC
Ah... what about the poor innocent driver that has to deal with this trajedy for the rest of his life? It's neither one's fault. The 4 yr doesn't know any better, and the driver was at the wrong place at the wrong time.