Toddler struck and killed by taxi outside Tootgarook Primary School
Flowers and stuffed toys are piling up at the Mornington Peninsula site where a little girl was hit and killed by a taxi yesterday, with neighbours saying the tragic death has “hit a nerve”.
South East
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A toddler has been struck and killed by a taxi in front of loved ones on the Mornington Peninsula.
The girl was with two women and another child when they got out of the taxi on Wilkinson St, near Tootgarook Primary School, just after 1.40pm.
Police believe the little girl was fatally struck as the taxi began to drive away.
Emergency services frantically worked to save the girl but she died at the scene.
The baby girl’s sister was being looked after by a Wilkinson St resident after the tragedy unfolded.
Visibly distraught family members picked up the toddler and took her back to the townhouses about 5.15pm.
The neighbour, who did not want to be named, said she helped console two adult women when the baby was struck.
“I’ve never seen the children before,” the woman told the Herald Sun.
“(I think the townhouses) are used mostly for Airbnb.”
A Toyota sedan with Frankston Taxi branding remains parked outside the property.
One nearby resident, who did not want to be named, said she heard high-pitched screams coming from outside the houses.
“There were two women screaming and yelling, I could hear them from two streets away,” she said.
“I walked out to see what was happening and there was police everywhere and a helicopter.
“I can’t believe it … it’s tragic.”
A dining chair piled with tributes has been placed on the nature strip.
A framed message saying “Fly high little one” and a bronze angel are on the seat with a single red rose and a cluster of soft toys including a red dinosaur and a well-loved pink teddy bear.
The makeshift shrine was set up last night out the front of a row of townhouses close to the accident scene.
A woman living in one of the townhouses told the Herald Sun she had seen a neighbour sitting on the chair and grieving last night.
“I think she placed the chair there”, Isabelle Modica said.
“It looked like she knew the family.”
Ms Modica moved into Wilkinson St a few months ago.
She said she didn’t know the toddler or her family.
“Most of the people living in these townhouses are not permanent residents,” she said.
“I think the two women who got out of the taxi were visiting family who use one of the townhouses as their holiday house.”
Another permanent Wilkonson St resident, who did not want to be named, said the death had “hit a nerve”.
“When a child dies we all feel it. We grieve the future they never had.”
He said he did not know the little girl or her family.
The male taxi driver stopped at the scene and is assisting police.
The matter will be investigated by detectives from the Major Collision Investigation Unit.
Detectives from the unit are on route to the scene.
Anyone who witnessed the crash or who may have dashcam footage of the car is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at crimestoppersvic.com.au
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