A two-year-old boy was chasing a paper airplane caught in the wind moments before being fatally run over in a school parking lot.
Muscab Khalif followed the paper plane into the path of the oncoming car outside Durack State School in East Brisbane on November 28.
Muscab had been accompanying his mother Saharah Lge to pick up his two older sisters.
Muscab’s father, Mohamud Khalif, said his companion shouted “stop, stop, stop,” but the car continued unaware that the boy had been hit until about 400 meters ahead, when another motorist alerted them to the tragedy.
Khalif was at a nearby shopping center when he received the frantic call from his partner about the accident.
In his rush to get to the location, he jumped into a taxi instead of running back to his car.
The school principal performed CPR on Muscab in a grassy area of the parking lot near Avocet Street when paramedics arrived.
‘I have seen a lot of blood in the war fields in Sudan. I was a logistics officer… That death hurts, it hurts a lot,” Mr. Khalif told the courier mail.
Muscab Khalif followed the paper plane into the path of the oncoming car outside Durack State School in East Brisbane on November 28.
Khalif said Muscab had recently received his graduation certificate from the pre-prep program at the school his sisters Maud, 6, and Maida, 4, also attend.
The parents try to explain to the two girls what happened to their brother.
“They miss their brother deeply and it breaks my heart to see their confusion and sadness,” Khalif said.
“Everyone at school loved him and his kind spirit touched many lives.”
The family thanked emergency services and the dedicated staff at Durack State School for their support.
Muscab was farewelled by his family at a funeral held at the Kuraby mosque on November 30.
Khalif said his son was a “precious gift” who brought joy and laughter.
The school principal performed CPR on Muscab in a grassy area of the parking lot near Avocet Street when paramedics arrived.
“A sweet soul who touched our lives in a way we will cherish forever,” he said.
Just a week before the tragedy, Muscab had visited the beach for the first time during a family trip to the Gold Coast, where Khalif said his son was too scared to go into the water.
Khalif said Muscab’s brothers ask where their brother is.
“They miss their brother deeply and it breaks my heart to see their confusion and sadness,” she said.
“Everyone at school loved him and his kind spirit touched many lives.”
Khalif met his wife and moved to Australia from Kenya in 2016.
Their three children were all born in Australia.
Khalif said that just before his son died he found $4 he had given Muscab “safely kept” in his “little pocket.”
The grieving father said he would always keep the money as a reminder of the last happy moments he spent with his son.
Queensland Police said they are investigating the circumstances of Muscab’s death and seeking more information and witnesses.
No charges have been filed.