Kent boy, 10, in medically induced coma after being hit by bus, mum says

A mum whose son was hit by a bus near Folkestone said they won’t know the extent of his brain injury until he wakes up. Harrison Sahlah, 10, was struck by the vehicle on Saturday, June 29 at around 6.20pm.

The young boy was flown by air ambulance to King’s College Hospital in London for treatment. Kent Police officers, along with the South East Coast Ambulance service attended the crash.

His mum Kelly Sahlah told KentLive her son was hit by the bus on the right side of head and face. She said her child is in a stable condition after he was put in a medically induced coma.

READ MORE: Maidstone stabbing investigation sees Kent Police arrest two on suspicion of murder

READ MORE: Orpington resident arrested on suspicion of murder after man, 37, dies following road crash

Kelly told KentLive: “He is in a stable condition and is still in a medically induced coma to protect his brain. He has a significant brain injury but we won’t know the extent of the effects of the damage until he wakes.

“Police are still investigating but he was hit by the bus on the right side of his head and face only and has no other injury, marks or bruises anywhere else.”

Following the incident, Harrison lost two front teeth and a root, the mum said in a Facebook post addressed to the people of Folkestone. She has since continued updating her friends and family on her personal page with the latest posted on Tuesday (July 2) morning reading: “Nice stable night for H. Nearly 60 hours since the incident… Let’s hope for continued stability and good news today.”

While the incident is still being investigated by police, the mum said the crash happened on the dropped kerb right outside their house. “He was crossing the road with his friend to retrace his steps as he had dropped a five pound note earlier that afternoon,” Kelly said.

A GoFundme page has been set up by Adell Reeves, a close friend of Harrison’s parents Kelly and Khaled. Set up only two days ago, the page has since raised more than £3,000 so far out of a £5,000 target.

It reads: “As a community and friends, I would love to see us come together to support them as a family. Everyone who knows them already knows they have been through quite a lot already.

“From the bottom of my heart, let’s give them some time to heal and support them. I asked to do this for them on their behalf so it’s one less stress for them to worry about.”

The bus company has reacted to the incident. A Stagecoach spokesperson said: “We can confirm that a route 102 bus travelling towards Folkestone was involved in the incident on Sandgate Esplanade at around 6.15pm on Saturday. All our thoughts and well wishes are for the boy and his family.

"This is a horrifying incident for everyone involved and we are providing full support to the police investigation into what happened."

The crash happened in the same area where seven-year-old Will Brown was killed. The young boy was hit by two vehicles on the A259 Sandgate Esplanade in December.

Get more news from KentLive straight to your inbox for free HERE.