Revealed: Hero mum saved her daughter, five, by pushing her away - just seconds before 32-year-old was killed by a falling tree branch
Madia Kauser, 32, was taking the little girl, five, and her older brother for an evening walk in the park when the tree fell directly towards them.
It's understood the girl was in a pushchair which Mrs Kauser managed to push away before taking the full force of the falling branch herself - so that her daughter survived unscathed.
Her husband Wasim Khan, 33, was just yards ahead with their nine-year-old son when the branch fell but was powerless to act in time during the shocking episode on Monday night.
He rushed to her side but little could be done for his tragic wife who relatives say adored her children.
One told the Daily Mail: 'Madia would have done anything for her children.'
The family are said to be in a state of shock after the freak accident which happened near Witton Country Park in Blackburn, Lancashire, a popular local beauty spot.
On Wednesday, Blackburn council had completely cut down what remained of the tree from which the branch fell as well as lopping off branches from several other nearby trees.
The area was littered with sawdust.
The accident happened just yards from the park's Big Cover wood where trees form the majority of the habitat.
On Wednesday relatives from all over the country were gathering at Blackburn's Madina mosque where the family were hoping a funeral could take place sometime in the evening.
Former mayor and still sitting councillor Zamir Khan MBE, an uncle in the tight-knit family, said Madia's body was still with the coroner.
He said: 'Her little girl told me her mother pushed her out of the way as the branch fell.
'Madia was a loving, doting mother and a very caring person.
'The older boy was walking with his father in front and could not believe what happened.
'It is very hard for the children. I do not think they will ever walk in that park again.
'It is tarnished for them. Their father is not in a good way either. He and other members of the family have taken it very hard.
'People have come from all over the country - from Sheffield, Bradford, Birmingham, London and other places - to be at her funeral which we hoped to have this afternoon in accordance with Muslim tradition.
'But until her body is released by the coroner, we cannot move forward. We are hoping it will be released today.
'What happened was an act of nature but it is unbelievable.'
In a statement, the council said it was 'deeply saddened' after the accident on Monday.
The authority's chief executive Denise Park said: 'Our thoughts and heartfelt condolence are with the family and friends of the person who has lost their life at this very difficult time.
'Emergency services including paramedics and the air ambulance attended the scene. Council staff also supported by cordoning off the area to ensure public safety.
'As part of precautionary safety measures, the tree involved was being felled this morning.
'Witton Park is a much-loved community space, and the safety of everyone who visits is of the utmost importance to us.
'Our thoughts remain first and foremost with the family at this very sad time.'
A Lancashire Police spokesman said the woman's death was not being treated as suspicious and a file would be prepared for the coroner.
A cyclist who rides through the park every day said: 'I have seen loads of fallen branches before but it is mainly because of high winds.
'There wasn't even a breeze when this poor woman was killed. It is utterly heartbreaking.
'I shudder to think what her poor children and husband are going through.'
Many people walking there today were unaware of the tragedy and thought the council were carrying out unnecessary tree work.
One said: 'I was initially cross that they had cut the tree down until someone told me what had happened. It doesn't bear thinking about.'
Local councillor Paul Marrow said: 'There have been concerns about ash dieback disease and the number of dead trees in Witton Park and across the borough.
'The council needs to make regular, thorough inspections of the trees in the park to ensure they are safe.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
‘I sold my home to HS2 for scrapped line for £1.2m – only for it to be turned into a cannabis factory'
A man who sold his home to HS2 says he was left distraught after discovering it had been turned into a cannabis factory. Alan Wilkinson bought the four-bedroom luxury home in the leafy hillside village of Whitmore Heath in Staffordshire with his wife, Gillian, in the late 1970s. The couple added a swimming pool and new kitchen to the plush property – but when proposals emerged for the now-axed HS2 line beneath the hamlet, they pushed forward with plans to downsize and sell. It triggered a battle to sell the home to HS2, a fight Gillian would not see the end of, as she died from pancreatic cancer two weeks before the scheduled move-out in 2019. The detached property was not required to make way for the line, but the couple settled on a £1.2m deal with HS2,which purchased it under a 'special circumstances' purchase scheme. But Mr Wilkinson was left shocked when he discovered his old home, which had subsequently been rented out, was being used to grow cannabis plants. 'My old neighbour saw two Jehovah's Witnesses walking out of my old drive and he told them 'you won't find anyone in there',' the 85-year-old said. 'They replied 'no, but there's cannabis'. Turns out there was 184 cannabis plants growing inside. They could smell it.' Soon after, Staffordshire Police raided the house and found the drugs growing across five rooms inside. A man from Merseyside pleaded guilty to the production of a class B drug in July. The property, which Mr Wilkinson said was re-roofed and had its swimming pool removed before being rented out, has now been left empty – one of hundreds of properties requiring security, costing HS2 £1.9m in 2023/24. 'It's terrible,' he said. 'I feel awful, truthfully, about what's happened. I lived there for 30 years; it was a great chunk of my life, a beautiful house, and now it's sitting empty, abandoned. 'I hear rumours it's going to be knocked flat and rebuilt.' The Wilkinsons' home was one of 35 sold to HS2 under a number of selling schemes as HS2 planned twin tunnels beneath the hill-top village. Some are now rented out, while a number sit empty, judged not to be suitable for the letting market. The community's strain over the situation was exacerbated by the then-Tory government's decision in 2023 to scrap the section of line that would have run from Birmingham to Manchester. Mr Wilkinson said: 'HS2 destroyed our village. It was a fine community where people who had made it and gone to live. But the plans for the line tore it apart, more than a dozen people died while waiting to sell their homes. 'I can't bear to go back, so many memories there with my wife, all gone.' Mr Wilkinson, who also served as the chairman of Whitmore Parish Council, was central to the community's dispute with HS2 as locals sought deals to sell their homes. With his wife's condition worsening, he travelled to London to deliver a petition for HS2 over the selling of homes at the High Speed Rail Bill Committee in 2018. Asked on the impact of the HS2 plans on his family's health, Mr Wilkinson said: 'Yes, of course it did [have an impact]. HS2 was the worst thing that could have happened to Whitmore Heath.' It's understood that homes purchased by HS2 in Whitmore Heath, and along the stretch of axed line to Manchester, remain under Department for Transport ownership despite the route being scrapped almost two years ago. In total, HS2 spent £3.79bn purchasing properties for the overall line, including £633m on the now-scrapped sections of the route. An HS2 spokesperson said the line would have run in a tunnel up to 30 metres beneath Whitmore Heath, and that no homeowner was compelled to sell their property for the railway to be built. They continued: 'We recognised Mr Wilkinson's difficult situation and he accepted our offer in 2019 to buy his home through HS2's Special Circumstances Scheme, under which we covered moving costs, paid stamp duty and legal fees. 'We utterly condemn the illegal use of property acquired by the project being used as a cannabis farm. It was let on the open rental market, and managed by property agents, to help recoup costs to the taxpayer. 'We have been unable to relet the property since the farm was closed down by police because the costs of returning it to a lettable state are too great. The area is patrolled by our private security teams who work closely with Staffordshire Constabulary.' On the cannabis farm discovered at Mr Wilkinson's former home, Staffordshire Police said Darren Pinnington, 32 of Gomville Road, Liverpool, was charged with being concerned in the production of a controlled drug of class B in May. He pleaded guilty to the charge at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court in July and is awaiting sentencing. The HS2 section still going ahead will run from London to Handacre in Staffordshire with a spur to Birmingham, but delays and spiralling costs mean no target date has yet been announced for opening.
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
Mother appeals to find son's killers after ‘three painful and traumatic years'
A woman said she had suffered 'three painful and traumatic years' as she made an appeal to find her son's murderers on the anniversary of his death. Sam Rimmer was with a group of friends in Lavrock Bank, Dingle, Liverpool, on August 16 2022 when riders on two electric bikes drove into the cul-de-sac and fired a number of shots towards them at around 11.40pm, Merseyside Police said. Mr Rimmer, 22, was injured and despite the efforts of police officers and ambulance staff he was pronounced dead a short while later in hospital. Ten people have been arrested in relation to the murder but no one has been charged. On the third anniversary of his death, Mr Rimmer's mother Joanne said: 'It is three painful and traumatic years since Sam was murdered. The passing of time has not eased the pain. ' People say to cherish the memories, but when I think of Sam, the memory I have is of his body in the morgue, staring at his chest, willing him to breathe. No parent should ever have to identify their child's body. 'Unless you have experienced the murder of your child, you cannot begin to understand the agonising, torturous mental and emotional horror we endure daily. The ache of my heart just to see my son again. 'My appeal is to the people who know who killed Sam. If you know something and you are reading this, please, please speak up. No one will ever know as it will be completely anonymous. 'Sam was shot in his back. He was turned away from his killers. This image haunts me. In his final moments, was he scared? Was he in pain? 'I died the day Sam did. I function but I do not live. I know the pain of losing Sam will never go but if I see justice for his murder, maybe the family and I can begin to move forward and remember the happy memories of Sam.' Detective Chief Inspector Steve McGrath said: 'Sam's death has had a devastating impact on his family, and in particular his mum, and they deserve to get justice. 'It has now been three years since Sam was tragically killed, but we are still determined as ever to find the person or people responsible. 'As part of our investigation we have made a number of arrests and received a lot of information from the public. We just need the final piece of the puzzle. 'We know that there are people out there who live in the Dingle/ Toxteth area who know who is responsible and my appeal is for those people to come forward and tell us what they know. 'Do you know who was riding on the bikes that arrived in Lavrock Bank that night? Do you know where they went afterwards or where they are being stored? 'Any information passed on to us will be handled with care and sensitivity, and we can put extensive measures in place to protect those brave enough to come forward.' Anyone who witnessed the incident, was in the area at the time or has any information is urged to contact Merseyside Police through their public portal. The force said it can also be contacted through its social media desk @MerPolCC on X, or information can be left anonymously with Crimestoppers on 0800 555111, with reference number 22000603397.
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
British Transport Police warned cuts will endanger railway staff
The RMT union has warned that proposed cuts to the British Transport Police (BTP) would seriously endanger the safety of railway staff. The BTP is reportedly facing an £8.5 million funding shortfall this year, potentially leading to the closure of 13 police stations and the loss of hundreds of posts. The union argues that these cuts would leave frontline rail staff exposed to rising levels of violence, harassment, and anti-social behaviour. RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey stated that the cuts are both "outrageous and dangerous," especially given a reported sharp rise in crime across the network. The RMT has launched a campaign to demand better protection for rail workers and safer travel for passengers.
