Parents in shock after boy, ten, is killed by half-tonne snowball

THE parents of a ten-year-old schoolboy crushed to death by a giant snowball as he played with a friend were in "absolute shock" last night.

Peter Strang was killed when the snowball, believed to have weighed nearly half a tonne, rolled down a slope in a farmer’s field and struck him.

Neighbours, alerted by his friend’s anguished cries for help, rushed to the scene and desperately tried to resuscitate Peter, but he was dead by the time paramedics arrived.

News of the tragedy late on Saturday afternoon was broken to his Primary Six classmates at a special morning assembly at Torphins Primary School, near Banchory, Aberdeenshire, yesterday.

The Rev Norman Nicoll, who took the assembly, said the death of the popular schoolboy had left the village completely devastated. He said: "Such a tragic accident has left the community stunned and shocked and there is just a general sense of disbelief. His mum and dad are in absolute shock.

"The task now is to help the family, especially, to come to terms with their loss and to offer support in whatever way we can."

Peter’s father, Hamish, a software engineer, his mother, Carol, and sister, Kirsty, 13, were being comforted by relatives at their home in the village and were too distressed to talk about their loss.

The accident happened after Peter and a friend, Christopher Lambin, went sledging in a field near Upper Dagie farm, on the outskirts of Torphins. They were playing with giant snowballs in the field when Peter became trapped beneath one of the massive balls of snow.

Charlie Watt, 63, of Upper Dagie, was one of the first to reach the scene. He said: "It was just a tragic accident. They were just wee boys out playing in the snow quite innocently. They have lots of fun up there in the snow. It just shows there are dangers with everything in life."

Irene Reid, the headteacher at Torphins Primary, said: "Our thoughts are with Peter’s family and we are all extending our sympathy to them. Peter was a lovely boy who will be remembered with great affection by pupils and staff alike.

"He had a great sense of humour and cared about other people a lot. He was always thinking about others who were less fortunate than himself."

She went on: "He has spent all his school life at Torphins and will be much missed. His family have a long-standing connection with the school and are very much part of the community. We will all be offering them our support and help as much as we can and we hope they will find some comfort from that."

Mrs Reid said she and her deputy, Liz Hendry, had visited Peter’s family on Sunday afternoon and would continue to be in close contact with them.

A spokeswoman for Aberdeenshire Council said pupils at Torphins School were receiving considerable support and were "being encouraged to talk about their feelings". She said the school would be liaising with parents and would bring in extra support if needed.

Grampian Police said it had been a tragic accident. There were no suspicious circumstances and a report was expected to be submitted in due course to the procurator fiscal.

Roger Vincent, of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, said: "I can’t think how this could have been prevented because it’s so rare.

"It’s most unfortunate at this time of year when youngsters go out to play in the snow and enjoy themselves and it ends like this. It just shows how an apparently harmless, fun-filled activity can end in tragedy."