‘Amazing’ mum remembered after tragic e-scooter death

A Moreton Bay mother has been taken off life support 11 days after an e-scooter accident, leaving her two children and a grieving family behind.

Naomi Harling died after an e-scooter crash. Photo: supplied

Naomi Harling was travelling home without a helmet on a e-scooter when her front wheel caught on a missing piece of pavement, thrusting her to the ground and causing her critical injuries.

Eleven days later the Moreton Bay woman’s life support was turned off.

Ms Harling was a devoted mother to her three-year-old daughter Aayla and six-year-old son Jett, and now her sister Renee Chaplin is struggling to fill the “void” her sister has left behind.

“There was some pavement missing in the road, she was on the path and the front wheel of the scooter has hit that, and she has fallen hard,” Ms Chaplin said.

“She sustained quite a significant head injury in the fall and broke her collarbone and a number of ribs, but her head injury is what led to her death.”

Ms Chaplin said CCTV footage showed a woman run to the aid of her sister, while an off duty paramedic also rendered her roadside assistance.

“She immediately came to Naomi’s aid and called the ambulance,” she said.

Ms Chaplin, while breaking down in tears, said she spent 11 days at her sister’s bedside at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital “trying to save her life but it didn’t work”.

“She was sort of in the best possible care, but the pressure to her brain was too significant,” she said.

Naomi Harling with her son Jett. Photo: supplied

“There should be a warning to people to take their helmets seriously, in ICU they see a significant number of E scooter accidents now.”

Rules in Queensland include the mandatory wearing of helmets and speed limits of 12km/h on footpaths and 25km/h on roads for e-scooters.

Ms Chaplin said if Naomi was wearing a helmet she would “still be with us”.

Naomi’s life support was turned off on Saturday with the Ms Chaplin now coming to terms with life without her sister.

“We’ll just do our best to fill the void here, what she’s left behind and honour her memory and make sure the children know what an amazing mum they had.”

A fundraiser has since been established for Naomi’s family which will go towards supporting her children and funeral costs.

“It’s devastating because she has a six year old boy and a disabled three-year-old girl, and she’s a stay-at-home mum,” Ms Chaplin said.

Naomi Harling has been remembered after her death. Photo: supplied

“My sister was trying to get her onto NDIS, but given she was a stay-at-home mum financially there’s some strain there in terms of helping her kids, even through Christmas.”

According to the Department of Transport and Main Roads 13 lives have been lost on e-scooters since 2018 while the Queensland Injury Surveillance Unit revealed there had been 3305 serious injuries between January 1, 2019 to September 30, 2023.

Statistics show injuries from e-scooters have risen rapidly since 2019, with presentations at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital increasing from 250 to more than 400 in 2023.

Originally published as ‘Amazing’ mum remembered after tragic e-scooter death