Schoolboy injured in kart crash

A TEN-year-old boy was said to be in a "serious" condition in hospital yesterday after being badly injured while driving an off-road kart in Perthshire.

The boy, who has not been named, sustained serious head injuries and was airlifted to hospital in Dundee following the crash on private land near Whitehills Farm, Gleneagles, on Sunday evening.

He was driving the battery-operated kart, which was fitted with a roll-cage, on a track leading to a purpose-built quad bike facility when he is believed to have lost control and the vehicle ended up in a ditch.

A spokesman for Tayside Police said: "The young driver sustained a serious head injury. The emergency services were notified and officers from Tayside Police attended, along with paramedics from the Scottish Ambulance Service. Due to the seriousness of the injury, a trauma team attended from Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, along with an air ambulance.

"The boy was stabilised at the location before being conveyed to Ninewells Hospital by the air ambulance. The boy has undergone surgery and whilst his injuries are serious, they are not considered to be life-threatening."

A police inquiry has begun into the incident.