Gate Falls, Crushes 5-Year-Old Citrus Heights Boy

CITRUS HEIGHTS (CBS13) — A 5-year-old boy was crushed by a gate meant to protect him and his family.

The boy's uncle, Andre Ozruga, says Jason Kolyadich ran up to close their iron gate after a family member drove into their Citrus Heights driveway. That gate somehow broke free from its track, falling over and crushing the little boy.

"When they play outside, we close the gate so they don't go into the street," Ozruga said.

A piece of safety equipment many people have, instead turning into a deadly object. The section that fell weighed upwards of 300 pounds.

Scott Berg is with Twisted Metal, a company which installs similar gates to the one that crushed Jason. He says what likely happened is a steel bar designed to stop such accidents was displaced when the fence posts shifted.

"If those posts are put in incorrectly, they're absolutely going to open up, and it won't stop, or the gate could even wobble between those," Berg said.

He insists everyone needs to make sure that their gates are properly installed, as well as properly maintained.