River Valley accident: Car that killed 4-year-old girl not moving at fast speed as it was making a turn, court hears

SINGAPORE: The car involved in a River Valley fatal accident that killed a four-year-old girl earlier this year was not travelling at a fast speed as it was making a turn, the coroner's court heard on Wednesday (Jun 26).

Zara Mei Orlic died on Jan 23 after being hit by a car which had turned right into Institution Hill from River Valley Road. 

She was taken to Singapore General Hospital (SGH) but died later that evening. An autopsy report stated that the cause of death was head injury consistent with a motor vehicle collision. 

During the coroner's inquest on Wednesday, Traffic Police Station Inspector Muhammad Firdaus Suleiman, the investigating officer of the case, told the court of the findings detailed in an investigation report.

The court also heard, among other things, that Zara's parents had told the maid to take a route that did not require her to "jaywalk" at Institution Hill, but the maid did not heed this instruction.

When asked later by Coroner Eddy Tham if Zara was crossing at a legal crossing zone, Mr Firdaus said that there were no signs to stop pedestrians from doing so.

Zara's parents, represented by lawyer Alfred Lim, were both present in court, as were the lawyers for the driver.

Apart from Zara, the couple has two daughters, with Zara being the middle child. The family lived in a condominium along Institution Hill known as Aspen Heights.

Institution Hill is a single-lane, two-way road that leads in from River Valley Road. At the point of the accident, several cars were waiting to turn from Institution Hill to River Valley Road. 

According to Mr Firdaus, the maid had been with the family since October 2023.

She was tasked to fetch the two younger children home from school, while the eldest takes a school bus. 

On Jan 23, the maid had been walking Zara and her younger sister home from a preschool along River Valley Road about 10 minutes away from their home. 

The maid, who was carrying the girls' school bags, admitted to not holding Zara's hand, as she was an "independent child" who walked ahead.  

Mr Firdaus said that the maid had been previously instructed by the family to use the signalised pedestrian crossing closer to Institution Hill. If she had done so, she would not have had to cross the road at Institution Hill, which does not have signalised pedestrian crossings.

However, the maid used the signalised crossing nearer to the girls' pre-school instead, which would have required her to cross Institution Hill to get to the condominium.

Zara's parents did not know why the maid went against their instructions that day, Mr Firdaus said. 

However, he also noted during proceedings that the maid had used this particular route "frequently".

At 4.57pm, the police received a call about the accident. 

The driver, 40, whose name was not revealed during the proceedings, had been on the way home after fetching her children.

As she turned right into Institution Hill, Zara ran across the front of her car. The car hit the child and ran over her before coming to a stop. 

The driver said she had not noticed Zara, and had only felt her car hitting and going over something. She then heard a loud scream and immediately checked her rearview mirror, only to realise that she had hit someone. 

She stopped the car and rushed to Zara, who was lying motionless on the road. 

The authorities were alerted and the driver remained at the scene until they arrived. 

Zara was taken to Singapore General Hospital, where she later died. The maid was separately treated for trauma. CNA understands that she is still with the family. According to the maid, she had screamed for the car to stop, but to no avail. She then informed Zara's father of the accident.

CAMERA FOOTAGE FROM DRIVER

In-car camera footage belonging to the driver captured Zara crossing between two stationary vehicles to get to the opposite side of the road when she was hit. 

Investigations show that the 1m-tall child appeared on the camera footage for only around one second before the collision occurred. 

When Coroner Tham asked if the driver's view of Zara would have been blocked by the vehicles waiting to exit Institution Hill, Mr Firdaus replied: "Correct, your honour." 

The lawyer engaged by Zara's parents, Mr Lim, also asked some questions, including how far the maid was from Zara when the accident happened. 

Mr Firdaus replied that based on the in-car camera footage, the maid was about three steps - or around 1m - behind Zara. At the time, the weather was fine, and the road surface dry. 

Mr Lim also asked if the driver had been distracted. "She could be on the phone, using Bluetooth or speaking with passengers in car, anything like that?" he asked.

Mr Firdaus replied: "Based on investigations, no she was not distracted." 

On whether any prosecution action had been taken against the driver or maid, Mr Firdaus said this would be decided by the Attorney-General's Chambers after the coroner's inquiry is completed. 

When asked for the full name of the driver, Mr Firdaus said that he would only refer to her as "involved party" for now. 

Coroner Tham will deliver the findings of the case on Jul 5.