A 12-year-old schoolboy has died after being knocked down by a bus on Sunday evening in Mesaieed.

Shawn Allen Abraham, a pupil at the DPS Modern Indian School, was described by his principal as  a “very loving and talented child.”

“He was very fond of school,” Asna Nafees, headmistress, told Doha News. “He was a very keen student, fond of sports activities.” 

Shawn was knocked over by a bus near his apartment block in Mesaieed at around 7.30pm Sunday. He was returning home after visiting a local shop, reports the Peninsula.

The paper added that the bus was reversing when Shawn was hit.

Nafees attended a memorial and prayers for the boy near Hamad Medical Corp.’s mortuary last night, together with a group of teachers from the school, and family and friends of the victim.

Funeral planned

Gulf Times reports that Shawn’s body was flown home to Kerala yesterday, adding that he will be buried tomorrow at Emmanuel Marthoma Church, Adoor, in Kerala’s Pathanamthitta district.  

Shawn is the eldest child of Allen Oommen Abraham and Merina Allen. He has one sibling, a younger sister, who also attends the DPS Modern Indian School.

News of Shawn’s death comes just a day after the Ministry of Interior launched its “One Second” road safety campaign, aimed at reducing Qatar’s dismal road accident record. 

According to the MOI, the number of accidents resulting in injury jumped nearly 12 percent last year. The number of severe injuries increased some 3.2 percent, while the number of people killed fell half a percent, from 205 in 2011 to 204 in 2012.

Thoughts?

Credit: Photo courtesy of the DPS Modern Indian School