Pinned under riding mower, Fairbank boy dies

FAIRBANK - A 12-year-old boy was killed over the weekend when a riding lawn mower may have thought was safely parked rolled downhill and pinned him, authorities said.

Carson James McGrane, 12, of Fairbank, was mowing a lawn Saturday afternoon in the 400 block of Lakeside Drive, according to the Buchanan County Sheriff's Office. It appears he shut the lawn mower down and stepped away from it, deputies said.

But at some point, the mower began to roll backward on an incline, striking the boy and pinning him underneath, deputies said.

The Sheriff's Office was called to the scene about 1:40 p.m.

Carson was removed from under the mower and transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

This incident remained under investigation Monday by the Fairbank Police Department and Buchanan County Sheriff's Office.

Wapsie Valley Schools, where Carson attended and was in the seventh grade, noted on its website it had grief support and counselors available to students and staff. The district also postponed homecoming and related activities, moving them to Sept. 30 through Oct. 5, and indefinitely postponed the junior high football, volleyball and cross-country meets it had scheduled for Monday.

'Our deepest condolences go out to the McGrane family and friends in this difficult time,” the district said on its website. 'We are deeply saddened to receive the news of the sudden death of 7th Grader, Carson McGrane. He will be incredibly missed. The McGrane family has requested that in lieu of flowers any memorial contributions be given to a scholarship fund that will be created in Carson's name.”