A young Sydney mother has died after her hijab became tangled in a go-kart in an accident on the NSW central coast. The woman suffered severe neck and throat injuries after the hijab - a Muslim scarf that covers a woman's head and neck - became entangled with the go-kart while she was driving at Port Stephens Go-Karts yesterday.
Paramedics tried to save the 26-year-old, but she was pronounced dead shortly after she was flown to John Hunter Hospital by a Westpac rescue helicopter.
Detective Inspector Peter Fox of Port Stephens Local Area Command said today the longer part of the scarf was wedged down near one of the go-kart's wheel axles. "[It appears] the scarf was pulled across her throat ... from one side of the body to the other side," he said.
Paramedics were called to the track on the corner of Marsh Road and Nelson Bay Road in Bobs Farm about 2pm after reports a woman had been strangled by an item of clothing. Crews worked to stabilise her while the rescue helicopter flew to the site. She was flown to hospital but died a short time later.
It is believed the woman's husband and children, who were on holiday in the Nelson Bay area, were at the track at the time, but it is unclear whether they were driving go-karts at the time.
Sharon and Scott Taylor, of Coal Point, were at the track with their young family waiting to use the karts when the accident happened. Mrs Taylor said there were only two karts on the track at the time. "The kart hit the wall and stopped and she was just slumped over," she said.
Mr Taylor said the severity of the woman's injuries was obvious as soon as paramedics began to treat her. "Her clothing had wrapped around her neck," he said. He said he did not hold much hope of the woman surviving when he saw how badly her neck and throat had been injured.
Detective Inspector Fox said police removed the go-kart from the site and were examining it mechanically and forensically. Police were also speaking to the track's operators and the woman's family. |