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A few days after his tragic death, a 9-year-old boy died after getting stuck in a garage door.
Abdul Razack Tarawaley died Saturday night at a property on Mason Street Altona North, south-west Melbourne, when he and his friend became trapped in the top of the large, steel garage door.
Abdul’s 12-year-old friend remains at the Royal Children’s Hospital with horrific injuries, where he continues to fight for his life.
Abdul Razack Tarawaley will be carried out of the mosque on Friday after a short service in Newport
The community of Altona North mourns the loss of Abdul Razack Tarawaley, 9, (pictured) who died after becoming trapped in a garage door at a property in the city’s southwest
Abdul Razack Tarawaley’s father is comforted at the burial place of his son, who died in a freak accident on Saturday
Trees were planted in the cemetery where Abdul Razack Tarawaley was buried. His father is pictured in the center
A mourner told Daily Mail Australia the young child had a 50/50 chance of surviving the freak accident.
Experts continue to investigate the tragedy, which is believed to have occurred when one of the boys pressed a button that sent the garage door flying open.
Father Abdul Razack Tarawaley – who shares the same name as his son – revealed that his son was playing with friends in the garage below when the tragedy happened.
He discovered his infant son crushed at the top of the automatic garage door when he went downstairs to check on the children.
On Friday, Mr. Tarawaley alongside dozens of friends and family as they prayed over his son’s body in the cemetery.
In a break from strict Muslim tradition, female mourners were allowed to stand just out of earshot during the short ceremony.
The child’s distraught mother was comforted in a nearby car, which was surrounded by crying women.
Traditional Muslim funerals usually exclude women from such ceremonies altogether.
The service witnessed Abdul being removed from his white coffin and placed in the ground in a simple pine coffin, which was quickly covered with earth.
Family and friends immediately cleared the grounds before placing several gum trees in the mound where the little boy was buried.
Friends and family are expected to continue to honor Abdul on a day of mourning in Altona North, where he grew up.
Abdul’s friends from Newport Grammar’s fourth grade were among the mourners who attended the short ceremony at a mosque in Newport.
A mate was seen clinging to a hug as he came to pay tribute to his late partner.
Members of Abdul’s local football team, along with the headmaster, all attended the service.
A friend of Abdul Razack Tarawaley attended his funeral with a hug
Family of Abdul Razack Tarawaley outside a mosque in Newport where he said his goodbyes
Mourners remove part of white coffin Abdul Razack Tarawaley was carried to his final resting place
Abdul and his friend held on to the bars of the fence as it swung up, carrying the boys flat on it until it pinned them under a metal grille hanging from above
Mr Tarawaley described Abdul (pictured) as a ‘sweet’ boy who dreams of becoming a doctor
Mr Tarawaley was too distraught on Friday to speak to media representatives, who were invited to attend the funeral.
He told reporters on Saturday that he had done everything he could to save his beloved son.
“I’ve tried to pull the gate down, but I can’t because it’s too big and too heavy,” the devastated father told the Announce sun.
“I touched his head, I touched his fingers, everything is cold.”
Mr. Tarawaley said his son and another boy, his neighbor, rode up on the garage door as they pressed the open button to drive him up to the roof of the parking garage.
However, when the door opened, he crushed his son and seriously injured his friend.
Emergency services arrived at the scene just after 7:30 pm and paramedics worked desperately on Abdul, who could not be rescued.
Mr. Tarawaley described Abdul as a “sweet” boy who dreams of becoming a doctor.
He said his only child would be celebrating his tenth birthday in just two weeks and he loved football and playing with his friends.
The little boy’s uncle, Lamin, has wondered why the garage door was not equipped with safety features such as motion sensors or an emergency stop button.
“The door only had a button to go up and down and where the button is located is reachable for children,” he said.
The loss of Abdul under such tragic circumstances has shaken communities in Altona North and Newport.
Abdul Razack Tarawaley Snr comforts relatives at his son’s funeral
Mourners embrace at Abdul Razack Tarawaley’s funeral, which was attended by up to a hundred mourners
Abdul and his father in what would be their last anniversary together
Abdul’s family received a flood of tributes for their son on social media on Sunday as the tight-knit community grappled with the loss.
“My heart hurts at such sudden news. Find it so hard to believe. You will forever be in my heart my Ju,” one person wrote on Facebook.
‘It hurts a lot. I’m just in shock, pain and sadness,” said another.
Police, ambulance and fire brigade were on site with all their might on Saturday evening.
“The incident is not being treated as suspicious,” a Victoria Police spokesman said.
The apartment building is owned by non-profit social housing company Housing Choices Australia.
A spokeswoman said the organization was saddened by Abdul’s tragic death and his friend’s injuries.
The spokeswoman told the Herald Sun that a technician inspected the gate and determined it was “operationally sound and compliant.”
“Housing Choices is cooperating with all relevant authorities investigating the incident,” the spokeswoman said.
Female mourners were required to stand at a distance from the cemetery. They are pictured crying next to a car that Abdul Razack Tarawaley’s mother was believed to have been in
Female mourners at the funeral quietly reflect on the life of Abdul Razack Tarawaley
Male mourners gather around the burial site of Abdul Razack Tarawaley on Friday
Mourners stepped back to pay their respects. It is tradition that female mourners do not visit the cemetery