A five-year-old girl is fighting for life after being struck by a ute when she ran onto a busy road while fleeing an aggressive dog.
The young child suffered serious head injuries when she was hit on the Great Western Highway at Kingswood, in western Sydney, about 4.50pm on Monday.
Her little brother watched in horror from a nearby store as her father was seen dropping his belongings and running to her.
CCTV from the scene showed a dog, which appeared to be a Staffordshire bull terrier, chasing after the brother and sister moments earlier.
The boy took refuge in a nearby restaurant before his sister disappeared from view as she ran onto the highway.
Witnesses said they heard tires screeching and saw the father’s desperate bid to catch up to his girl, Seven News reported.
NSW Ambulance paramedics were across the road at the time and raced to treat the girl.
The five-year-old was rushed to Westmead Children’s hospital in a serious condition.
A five-year-old girl left fighting for life after she was struck by a ute on a busy road had been running away from an aggressive dog
CCTV from the scene showed a dog, which appeared to be a Staffordshire bull terrier, chasing after the brother and sister moments earlier
Kingswood locals reportedly have no idea who the dog belongs to.
‘Luckily the ambulance was literally on the other side (of the road) so it came straight away,’ witness Ahmed Mansour said.
‘It was pretty traumatising.’
The highway was partially closed on Monday afternoon as police lay cones around the crash site.
A young boy was treated for shock and taken to Nepean Hospital in a stable condition.
The 33-year-old ute driver was uninjured in the accident.
NSW Police took the driver to hospital for mandatory testing. He is not expected to be charged.
