Seven-year-old girl’s death after minibus in Singapore struck her ruled a road traffic-related accident
A Singaporean state coroner has ruled the 2024 death of a seven-year-old girl in a condominium carpark as a road traffic-related accident. The inquiry highlighted visibility issues caused by landscaping as a contributing factor to the tragedy.
Why it matters
The ruling provides legal closure for the family and highlights the importance of pedestrian safety and visibility in private residential estates.
SINGAPORE: The death of a seven-year-old girl after a minibus struck her at a Sengkang condominium in 2024 was ruled a “road traffic-related accident” by the state coroner on Wednesday (Oct 7).
State Coroner Adam Nakhoda also said pedestrians might not be seen by drivers in oncoming vehicles because of the height of some bushes and walls within the property.
The accident took place at around 6.20am on Aug 15, 2024, and Nivya Rameshwar died in hospital about an hour later.
In an inquiry into the case in February 2025, Station Inspector Jeff Tan, a Traffic Police investigation officer (IO), told the court about what happened on the day of the tragedy.
According to Nivya’s family domestic helper, Sivakumar Ilavarasi, she had taken the girl to a carpark service road at their condominium block at The Topiary in Fernvale Lane to wait for her school bus.
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