https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...l-15-died-strangled-hijab-racing-friends.html
A go-karting company has been ordered to pay nearly £120,000 after a Muslim schoolgirl died when she was strangled by her own hijab.
Ruwaida Adan, 15, choked to death after her headscarf became caught minutes into a race with her friends at Capital Karts in Barking, East London, on August 6, 2021.
The end of her scarf was said to be hanging out of her helmet and suit before it wound itself round axle of the go-kart and strangled her.
Emergency services were called to the scene and resuscitated the teenager, who was then taken to hospital. She died four days later after suffering a hypoxic brain injury and asphyxiation.
Capital Karts Trading, a company owned by Capital Karts, has now been ordered to pay a £90,000 fine following the tragic incident, as well as costs of £29,021.18 and a victim surcharge of £190.
Ruwaida Adan, 15, who choked to death after her headscarf became caught minutes into a race with her friends on August 6, 2021
A probe into Ruwaida's death in 2022 found that the teenager should have been told to remove her headscarf but checks at the venue missed it.
There were posters at the venue telling racers to remove any loose clothing and long hair tied back, although Ruwaida and her friends were not told to read them.
The jury at Walthamstow Coroners' Court said at the time: 'No safety check ensured that Ruwaida removed her headscarf before getting into her go-kart.
'No daily mechanics check was carried out on August 6, 2021. In Ruwaida's cart the plastic drive belt guard to the rear axle was absent and the rear seat shield was damaged.
'Both should cover exposed moving parts. Ruwaida's scarf became entangled in the moving parts resulting in her asphyxiation and her death on August 10, 2021.'
Meanwhile an investigation by Barking and Dagenham Council found none of the karts had been checked prior to the race, as was meant to happen every day.
It also found that Ruwaida's kart was itself faulty and was missing a guard that should have covered the mechanical parts where her headscarf got caught.
Her kart might not have been looked at by a mechanic for over a month, while the guard could have been missing 'for some time', investigators found.
The teenager died after racing with her friends at Capital Karts in Barking (pictured)
Ruwaida's mother Amina Mohamed, paid tribute to her daughter following the verdict at Romford Magistrates' Court earlier this month.
She said: 'In the wake of the tragic loss of our beloved Ruwaida, we are relieved to finally see Capital Karts held accountable for what happened on August 6, 2021.
'We express our heartfelt gratitude to the presiding judge, and to Barking and Dagenham Council for bringing this prosecution.'
'Ruwaida had so many plans and wishes for the future that will now never happen. Her absence leaves an irreplaceable void in our lives.'
'Ruwaida's memory will forever live on in our hearts, and we pray that her tragic loss serves as a catalyst for positive change in safety regulations within the go-karting industry.'
Capital Karts closed its Barking site in June 2022, and has opened another facility at Cabot Square in Canary Wharf under Capital Karts London Limited, which operates within the same group.
The company had previously pleaded guilty to an offence under s3(1) Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 on March 14, 2023.
A go-karting company has been ordered to pay nearly £120,000 after a Muslim schoolgirl died when she was strangled by her own hijab.
Ruwaida Adan, 15, choked to death after her headscarf became caught minutes into a race with her friends at Capital Karts in Barking, East London, on August 6, 2021.
The end of her scarf was said to be hanging out of her helmet and suit before it wound itself round axle of the go-kart and strangled her.
Emergency services were called to the scene and resuscitated the teenager, who was then taken to hospital. She died four days later after suffering a hypoxic brain injury and asphyxiation.
Capital Karts Trading, a company owned by Capital Karts, has now been ordered to pay a £90,000 fine following the tragic incident, as well as costs of £29,021.18 and a victim surcharge of £190.
Ruwaida Adan, 15, who choked to death after her headscarf became caught minutes into a race with her friends on August 6, 2021
A probe into Ruwaida's death in 2022 found that the teenager should have been told to remove her headscarf but checks at the venue missed it.
There were posters at the venue telling racers to remove any loose clothing and long hair tied back, although Ruwaida and her friends were not told to read them.
The jury at Walthamstow Coroners' Court said at the time: 'No safety check ensured that Ruwaida removed her headscarf before getting into her go-kart.
'No daily mechanics check was carried out on August 6, 2021. In Ruwaida's cart the plastic drive belt guard to the rear axle was absent and the rear seat shield was damaged.
'Both should cover exposed moving parts. Ruwaida's scarf became entangled in the moving parts resulting in her asphyxiation and her death on August 10, 2021.'
Meanwhile an investigation by Barking and Dagenham Council found none of the karts had been checked prior to the race, as was meant to happen every day.
It also found that Ruwaida's kart was itself faulty and was missing a guard that should have covered the mechanical parts where her headscarf got caught.
Her kart might not have been looked at by a mechanic for over a month, while the guard could have been missing 'for some time', investigators found.
The teenager died after racing with her friends at Capital Karts in Barking (pictured)
Ruwaida's mother Amina Mohamed, paid tribute to her daughter following the verdict at Romford Magistrates' Court earlier this month.
She said: 'In the wake of the tragic loss of our beloved Ruwaida, we are relieved to finally see Capital Karts held accountable for what happened on August 6, 2021.
'We express our heartfelt gratitude to the presiding judge, and to Barking and Dagenham Council for bringing this prosecution.'
'Ruwaida had so many plans and wishes for the future that will now never happen. Her absence leaves an irreplaceable void in our lives.'
'Ruwaida's memory will forever live on in our hearts, and we pray that her tragic loss serves as a catalyst for positive change in safety regulations within the go-karting industry.'
Capital Karts closed its Barking site in June 2022, and has opened another facility at Cabot Square in Canary Wharf under Capital Karts London Limited, which operates within the same group.
The company had previously pleaded guilty to an offence under s3(1) Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 on March 14, 2023.
