Boy, 7, Fatally Struck by Golf Cart Brother, 3, Was Driving

On Monday afternoon in Florida, the unimaginable: A 7-year-old boy was struck and killed by a golf cart, which was being driven by his 3-year-old brother. The younger child was approaching a right curve near a home on a street when the cart hit the older child, who was standing in the front yard of the home, ABC News reports. The older boy died at a nearby hospital, CNN reports. It's not clear why his little brother was driving the golf cart, but the younger boy, who was wearing neither a seatbelt nor a helmet, was not hurt. Under current law, golf cart drivers in Florida must be 14 years old, NBC Miami reports.

The incident is under investigation. Florida recently passed a law requiring golf cart drivers under the age of 18 to have a driver's license or permit, which teens in the state can't acquire until age 15. It takes effect October 1. More than 6,500 children in the US, more than half of those being 12 or younger, are hurt each year by golf carts. "I think it's important that we raise awareness of the severity and types of injuries that golf carts pose to children including pre-adolescents, so that greater prevention measures can be instituted in the future," a doctor said in a press release announcing those findings in a 2021 study. (More Florida stories.)