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Warning over Ottoman beds after child found hanging from strap Warning over ottoman beds after child caught in loop handle
(35 minutes later)
Trading Standards is investigating after a two-year-old boy was found hanging from a loop attached to a lift-up bed base. Trading Standards has launched an investigation after a two-year-old boy was found hanging from a loop attached to a lift-up bed base.
Buddy George was found by his mother hanging unconscious from a bed base at the family’s home in Kirk Hallam, Derbyshire, on Monday morning. He was rushed to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham where he made a full recovery.Buddy George was found by his mother hanging unconscious from a bed base at the family’s home in Kirk Hallam, Derbyshire, on Monday morning. He was rushed to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham where he made a full recovery.
Derbyshire county council’s Trading Standards team is urging anyone who has a bed fitted with a similar loop to remove, cut or tie it to prevent a strangulation hazard. The council said it would liaise with the National Bed Federation, which represents the UK bed industry, and recommend suspending the supply of similar beds currently available and remove potentially dangerous loops. Derbyshire county council’s Trading Standards team urged anyone who had a bed fitted with a similar loop to remove, cut or tie it to prevent possible strangulation. The council said it would talk to the National Bed Federation, which represents the bed industry, and recommend suspending the supply of similar beds and removing potentially dangerous loops.
The beds, known as ottoman frames, have lift-up bases to provide a hidden storage space. The couple’s bed was fitted with a foot loop which allows a person to start to lift the base before hydraulic arms bring the mattress up fully. The beds, known as ottoman frames, have lift-up bases to provide storage space beneath. The couple’s bed was fitted with a foot loop which allows a person to start to lift the base before hydraulic arms bring the mattress up fully.
Dave Allen, the council cabinet member for health and communities, said the boy had managed to trigger the lifting process but his weight was not enough to prevent the mattress from continuing to rise when his neck got caught in the lifting loop. “The strap effectively created a ligature that lifted him off his feet and it is only the fact that his mother found him in time that we are not dealing with a terrible tragedy,” said Allen. Dave Allen, the council cabinet member for health and communities, said Buddy had managed to trigger the lifting process but his weight was not enough to prevent the mattress from continuing to rise when his neck got caught in the loop.
“The strap effectively created a ligature that lifted him off his feet and it is only the fact that his mother found him in time that we are not dealing with a terrible tragedy,” Allen said.
The boy’s mother, Charlotte Hames, said: “I was in the bathroom and thought Buddy had gone quiet so I shouted up to him but got no response. I had a gut instinct something was wrong so rushed to our bedroom where he’d been playing and found him hanging by his neck from the bed’s lifting loop. He was blue in the face and not breathing − I was frantic.”The boy’s mother, Charlotte Hames, said: “I was in the bathroom and thought Buddy had gone quiet so I shouted up to him but got no response. I had a gut instinct something was wrong so rushed to our bedroom where he’d been playing and found him hanging by his neck from the bed’s lifting loop. He was blue in the face and not breathing − I was frantic.”
Jessica Alexander, executive director at the National Bed Federation, said they didn’t yet know who the supplier of the bed was or whether the company was a federation member. “We take all safety issues seriously and we will ensure that we bring this to our members’ attention immediately,” she said. Jessica Alexander, the federation’s executive director, said it was not yet known who supplied the bed or whether the firm was a federation member.
“We take all safety issues seriously and we will ensure that we bring this to our members’ attention immediately,” she said.