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Leopold Mercer: Boy, 4, killed instantly after concrete post collapsed on him while playing with friend

A post-mortem examination found little Leopold died due to a traumatic head and neck injury

HANBURY, ENGLAND: A four-year-old boy was killed instantly when a heavy brick post fell on him, an inquest heard. The child had reportedly started school only a few weeks before the tragic incident.

Leopold Mercer was swinging on an iron gate in his backyard after soccer practice with a friend when the concrete pillar collapsed on September 18 at their home in Hanbury, Worcestershire. The boy's parents, university professors Eva Frickel and Jason Mercer, heard the other child yell "Leo" and immediately knew something was wrong, Worcestershire Coroner's Court heard.

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As reported by the DailyMail, the guardians frantically tried to resuscitate Leopold before paramedics arrived. West Midlands Ambulance Service paramedics and Midlands Air Ambulance doctors continued CPR after reaching the place of the incident. However, the efforts did not bear fruit as the boy did not respond after 42 minutes, declaring Leopold dead at the scene. According to Dr Christopher Hamilton, a doctor with Midlands Air Ambulance, the boy “was lying on the path next to a fallen brick gate post and metal gate.” The emergency crew said that Leo was not responding when they arrived.

Eva Frickel, the mother of the boy, told the court how she had just driven the two boys back home from football training on Sunday when they got out of the car and began playing. The children were reportedly hanging on an iron gate next to the driveway when a concrete post fell on top of the toddler's head at 11:48 am. The post-mortem report conveyed that Leopold died due to a traumatic head and neck injury.

"Leopold had only been at school a couple of weeks and was a happy, outgoing little boy. On the driveway, there is a run of pillars in a half circle and one pillar has a garden gate attached to it," Frickel stated, according to the outlet. "The boys got out of the car and went over to play. I'd just moved the car onto the grass when I heard the other child scream 'Leo' and could tell from the sound of it that something was wrong. I ran round and saw him under the pillar that had fallen. It was so heavy, I wasn't able to move it." She recalled how Leopold's dad hurriedly ran from the house and labored to lift the pillar off his son before starting CPR. On the other hand, she called the police. "It wasn't long until I heard a helicopter and sirens but everything from then on is pretty blurred," she told the December 1 hearing.

Since the tragic incident, Eva said she had spoken to Leopold's friend who said that the two children were 'hanging on the same side of the gate' when the pillar fell. The other child reportedly suffered minor injuries and was taken to the hospital for immediate medical care. The mother of the young child shared a heart-wrenching statement on Twitter about how her family is dealing with grief while calling Leo an “always smiling spirit.” "I'm hoping we can find a path forward as a family in Leo's 'always smiling' spirit. And I'm hoping to create positive impact for us, our and Leo's friends and maybe one day even further afield. "I am still a scientist in my head, but my heart is forever broken. Child loss grief takes a permanent place in your life. "Life is unfair. You cannot be sure you will live tomorrow," she wrote. 

Senior coroner of West Mercia Police officers found "nothing sinister" about the circumstances, citing that "it appeared in their view to be a tragic accident."