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Girl, 7, fatally struck by ambulance rushing to Covid patient

A heartbroken and furious father has released pictures of his daughter, seven, who was knocked down and killed by an ambulance racing to a Covid positive patient during the pandemic.

“I want to show everyone who (they) killed,” said Alexey K, 39, after the emergency vehicle crushed the girl while reversing on the pavement on the side of the road.

His daughter Polina was walking to a lesson at her music school in the Russian city of Novosibirsk.

The ambulance crew tried to save the girl’s life after she suffered brain injuries, but were ultimately unsuccessful.

A criminal case has been opened against the driver, who was en route to pick up a patient at a time when Russia was experiencing record Covid-19 deaths and infections.

The siren of the ambulance was not sounding at the time of the fatal accident.

Polina was hit and killed by an ambulance rushing to a Covid patient during Russia's pandemic peak.
Polina was hit and killed by an ambulance rushing to a Covid patient during Russia's pandemic peak. Source: Australscope

The father and locals say the ambulance did not need to reverse on a pedestrian route to gain access to the patient whose condition was unknown at the time.

Ambulance sources say roadworks meant he could not reach the patient by another route.

The driver was rushed from the scene amid anger from locals and fears he would be lynched, it was reported.

“Whatever happens to him, it won't change anything for me,” the bereaved father told local media.

“Whatever is done to him now, even if he is lynched, no one returns anything to me.

“I don't know what I'll do ... My wife is lying down, just staring at one spot.

“I want to show everyone who (they) killed.”

Russia has officially suffered more than 215,000 coronavirus deaths during the pandemic. Source: Getty
Russia has officially suffered more than 215,000 coronavirus deaths during the pandemic. Source: Getty

Polina was walking her normal route to her singing lesson.

“My child suffered open head injuries and multiple rib fractures which indicates he simply ran over her,” the father said.

“At first the ambulance bumped her on the back, and she fell and hit the curb with her head.”

Dr Irina Bolshakova, lead physician of Novosibirsk emergency hospital, said: "Traffic police officers who worked at the scene will assess what happened.”

The ambulance could not find another way around a “construction site”, she said.

The pandemic has put a major strain on the Russian healthcare system with experts saying the true number of Covid cases in the country over the past 18 months is actually far higher than official government figures suggest.

According to Johns Hopkins University, Russia has seen more than 7.8 million cases and 217,382 Covid deaths during the pandemic.

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