Boy, 6, killed while trying to slide behind car in northern Manitoba parking lot

ManitobaA six-year-old boy is dead after he was hit by a vehicle that was backing up in the parking lot of a business in the northern Manitoba community of Shamattawa.’This is unfortunately a very tragic incident, and it’s going to be traumatizing for those involved’: RCMPCBC News · Posted: Dec 09, 2025 1:02 PM EST | Last Updated: December 9Listen to this articleEstimated 2 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.RCMP were called Dec. 5 to Shamattawa First Nation’s nursing station, where an injured boy had been taken by a driver. Shamattawa is seen here in a 2020 drone photo. (Trevor Lyons/CBC)A six-year-old boy is dead after he was hit by a vehicle that was backing up in the parking lot of a business in the northern Manitoba community of Shamattawa.RCMP were called around 4:45 p.m. on Friday to the community nursing station, where the boy had been taken by the driver of the vehicle.The boy later died from his injuries.Police said several children were bumper shining — hanging onto bumpers of vehicles in an attempt to slide behind them on the snow — when the collision happened in Shamattawa, about 735 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg.”The six-year-old may have thought the vehicle was going forward when it was in fact backing up,” Sgt. Paul Manaigre told CBC Manitoba radio program Up To Speed on Tuesday. ‘Tragic for the community’It is unclear whether the boy was with a group of children sliding behind cars, or if he saw others do it and tried it himself, RCMP said.Packed snow on the ground makes it possible for people to slide when hanging onto the back of a vehicle, but the activity is dangerous, Manaigre said. “You see the end results. It is tragic for the community,” he said. Police are not considering laying charges against the driver who struck the child. “This is unfortunately a very tragic incident, and it’s going to be traumatizing for those involved,” Manaigre said.While emergencies like this are infrequent, police say no one should try sliding behind a vehicle.”I’m hoping this doesn’t become a trend,” Manaigre said. “It’s just not worth the risk.”With files from Faith Fundal