Boy, 12, died at ski centre after he 'collided with employee' whilst on toboggan
A 12-year-old boy who died at a ski centre in Staffordshire suffered fatal injuries after his toboggan collided with an employee, investigators have said.
Louis Watkiss, from Sutton Coldfield, died on September 24 last year at the SnowDome in Tamworth and had been there at a friend's birthday party.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said it is now leading on the criminal investigation after Staffordshire Police handed it over to the watchdog.
The HSE said Louis had been in a toboggan when he collided with one of the centre's employees, suffering fatal injuries.
Andrew Johnson, principal inspector at HSE, said: “We continue to prioritise and thoroughly investigate the death of Louis, to establish any breaches of health and safety law.
“We are in regular contact with Louis’ family.”
The youngster's death prompted calls for new mandatory safety measures, with a post-mortem report revealing there was "little doubt a helmet would have saved his life" had he worn one.
Although some indoor snow sports venues have made helmets mandatory for participants to wear helmets, the current system is voluntary and there is no guidance or legislation in place for operators.
Louis’s parents, Chris and Natalie, contacted their MP Andrew Mitchell after discovering there were no rules making the wearing of helmets for children obligatory.
Raising the issue in a debate in the House of Commons on December 16 last year, Mr Mitchell told fellow MPs: “There is little doubt that a helmet would have saved Louis’s life. His death was not only tragic, but wholly avoidable.”
Mr Mitchell added there were alternatives to legislating, including the introduction across the indoor snow sports industry of a voluntary code of practice, ensuring children must wear helmets. He said the SnowDome had already made such a move.
