It was a mother's heart-breaking final click of her lone child. A four-year-old boy playing around a pole - on any other day, a mother would have been happy snapping up that moment, but not for Shaari, a resident of Kadamband in Pathanamthitta. Her child, Abhiram, was posing for a picture as he held onto a cement pole, when it uprooted and fell over his tiny body, crushing him to death on Friday at the Konni elephant rehabilitation centre. It cost a child's life to wake the Forest Department into action, as a safety audit is now being mooted at the centre. For the child's family, a pleasure trip has turned into a life-long pain.

On Friday morning, Shaari, along with Abhiram, his grandfather, uncle, aunt, and their two children, had set out on a family trip. Abhiram’s father, Aji, who works at a company in Dubai, recently returned after a visit. After visiting the Kallely Temple in Konni, the family stopped at the Elephant Centre around noon. The parents and kids, all in good spirits, were on the road en route to the 3D theatre when disaster struck. Like any child excited to pose for pictures, Abhiram too was posing when the pole he was leaning on toppled over and crushed him.

Although he was rushed to Konni Taluk Hospital and later to the General Hospital, he had sustained severe internal injuries and was declared dead on arrival.

The family, still in shock, is struggling to comprehend their loss. “I got a call asking me to rush to the General Hospital. They told me my nephew was no more. I couldn’t believe it. None of us could believe it,” said Shaari's brother, Sharath. For Shaari and Aji, Abhiram was their world — their only child in ten years of marriage. Hearing the news, Aji immediately took a flight from Dubai and reached Saturday morning to see his child one last time. Abhiram's funeral will be held on Sunday at 1 pm.

The freak accident happened in the most unexpected manner and at a place where nobody would have even thought of putting up a warning sign. A wire fence had been installed along the spot where the accident happened. The fence was removed, but the poles were painted and retained. With the probability of visitors stopping along the passage being nil, authorities overlooked the fact that the earth had washed off, weakening the stability of the structure. When a child grabbed the pole, the structure, which had already been unstable, gave way, costing a human life.

According to Assistant Conservator of Forests Jiyas Jalaludheen from the Ranni Forest Division, the incident took place on the elevated road leading to the 3D theatre. “Concrete poles had been placed along this route after removing a wire fence. The child was holding onto one of these poles when it gave way and fell down. The rains may have loosened the soil beneath it," he said.

An expert committee comprising officials from various departments will now undertake a safety audit to identify safety hazards in the centre so that such tragedies could be prevented in future. The family has given a statement to the Konni police following the incident.