You’ve seen them in stores. You may even have them in your home or garage. I happen to have dozens of them stacked in closets throughout our home. They are those large plastic storage containers the perfect size for storing seasonal clothing items, Christmas decorations, and children’s toys. Unfortunately, they are also just the right size for young children to climb into… and that’s exactly what one New York toddler did during a recent game of hide-and-seek.
According to news reports, a 2-year-old boy was found dead in a plastic storage container in his family’s Bronx apartment two days ago. The boy’s mother told police the child likely died while playing a game of hide-and-seek with his young siblings.
Police told the New York Daily News that the boy’s mother last saw her toddler son, Anthony alive at about 9 p.m. Wednesday, when she put him to bed with his two siblings, ages 4 and 6. According to officers, the boy’s mother claims that sometime during the night the children snuck out of bed to play hide-and-seek. She said one of Anthony’s siblings hid the tot in a large plastic storage container and went back to sleep without letting him out. When Anthony’s mother awoke on Thursday she said she found his lifeless body inside the container.
Can you imagine? When I heard about this tragedy I instantly thought of my own 2-year-old daughter and all of the plastic storage containers I have around our home. Luckily each is sealed shut and stacked on top of each other in closets she never enters. Then again, perhaps, Anthony’s mother did the same.
This incident also reminded me of a similar tragedy I had to cover as a local TV news reporter. Much like Anthony’s story, a family of Amish children were playing hide-and-seek. One of them–a young girl–decided to hide in a well-built wooden storage box. The box lid was left open by a parent. The excited child climbed in, shut it, but later found the heavy wooden lid was too heavy for her to reopen. She died before anyone could find her.
It may be cliché to write that our homes are filled with unassuming objects that can turn a child’s game into a parent’s worst nightmare. But, as we are reminded on a daily basis children are creative and in Anthony’s case his sibling’s idea of a great hiding place cost him his life.
So, how do we as parents childproof plastic storage containers? I plan to keep mine out of my child’s reach. If you have older children you may want to remind them never to play in large objects that have lids. What other suggestions do you have?
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