Durham County sheriff's deputies had not released the name of the 2-year-old boy late Friday. "It was a very, very unfortunate accident," Durham's sheriff's Lt. Tony Prignano said Friday night.

The accident occurred at 325 Red Mountain Road and was reported to 911 dispatchers at 7 p.m., Prignano said. The sheriff's spokesman said the riding mower was backing up when the child was struck. The child did not live at the residence, Prignano said.

Emergency workers transported the child to Duke University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 9 p.m., the spokesman said.

The accident is still under investigation.

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