Boy ‘thrown high into the air’ in Dagenham car collision

The scene in Valence Avenue (Image: Archant)

The incident happened in Valence Avenue at 4.17pm after the youngster got off a bus and crossed the road.

Neighbour Eduardo Marreno Jumenez spotted the collision and ran over to help the boy.

“I was cycling along and I saw it happen,” he said. “A car hit him and the boy flew so high through the air.

“It was an awful sight. He banged his head very badly.

“He was covered in blood. I pressed his head with towels until the ambulance came about 20 minutes later.”

The 35-year-old, who lives around the corner, said that the incident made him fear for the safety of his own three children.

“It was such a shock to see and so scary that it can happen whenever,” he added.

Police confirmed they were called at 16.18pm to reports of a child in a collision with a Volkswagen Passat.

They closed the road shortly afterwards and it was reopened at 19.14pm.

The boy was taken to an east London hospital for treatment for a head injury.

His injuries, although initially believed to be serious, have been deemed non life threatening.

A spokeswoman from London Ambulance Service said: “We treated a boy for a head injury and took him as a priority to Queen’s Hospital.

“He was conscious and breathing.”