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Fourth-grader choked on marshmallow

Boy was working on class project about writing, camping

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  • Gheni Platenburg •
  • Originally published March 1, 2010 at 9:27 p.m., updated March 2, 2010 at 4:46 p.m.

  • PEDIATRICIANS ISSUE WARNING

  • Every five days, a child in the United States chokes to death while eating. Even more children die after swallowing items like balloons and small toys. Things have to change, says the American Academy of Pediatrics, perhaps starting with labels ...

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    • Every five days, a child in the United States chokes to death while eating. Even more children die after swallowing items like balloons and small toys. Things have to change, says the American Academy of Pediatrics, perhaps starting with labels on hot dogs, marshmallows, and round or cylindrical hard candies, which pose a high choking risk to children. In a policy issued Feb. 22, the group is also asking the Food and Drug Administration to establish a nationwide food related choking-incidence surveillance and reporting system "to warn the public of existing and emerging hazards." "This is a call to action," pediatric emergency medicine specialist Gary A. Smith, MD, old WebMD. "Choking is preventable; and government, industry, and consumer protection groups need to work together to protect children." Source: WebMD Health News

  • FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS

  • Visitation will be 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday at Colonial Funeral Home. The Jehovah's Witnesses will have a funeral talk at 7 p.m. Wednesday, with guest speaker Rolando Padron.

The Victoria community tried Monday to understand how a 9-year-old boy could have choked to death on a marshmallow.

Counselors were at Schorlemmer Elementary School on Monday helping students and staff cope with the death of fourth-grader Pedro Vicente Hernandes.

"While it appears the child's death was possibly caused by a choking accident, we cannot confirm the cause of death," said Diane Boyett, Victoria school district spokeswoman said.

She confirmed the incident occurred while Vicente was assembling ingredients to prepare s'mores as a part of a fourth-grade writing activity that included a camping theme.

Sometime before 3 p.m., Vicente said he did not feel well and left the room for a drink of water. His teacher saw the boy collapse shortly afterward.

Meghan Castillo, 11, said she remembered yelling, "Hang in there, Vicente," as he fought to catch his breath.

"He was crying while he was choking," said the fifth-grader who was in the hallway. "The last time I saw him, they were putting a tube down his throat."

A school nurse and the Victoria Fire Department employees attempted to resuscitate him. Vicente was pronounced dead later that evening at DeTar Hospital North.

Justice of the Peace Stuart Posey, who ordered an autopsy, declined to release specific details about the cause of death.

"I do not want to release anything until I'm satisfied with the autopsy report and see that there were no other contributing factors," Posey said.

According to a Centers for Disease Control analysis, each year about 70 U.S. children under the age of 10 die after choking on foods.

Hot dogs, whole grapes, popcorn, peanuts, marshmallows, carrots, apples, chewing gum, and chunks of peanut butter all pose a choking risk, according to the CDC.

Dr. John McNeill, director of emergency medicine at Citizens Medical Center, said patients with obstructed airways can also suffer from brain injuries due to a lack of oxygen.

"In four to six minutes, that person can sustain irreversible brain damage," McNeill said.

He recommended parents visit www.redcross.org and learn how to perform back blows and abdominal thrusts in order to save a choking victim.

"It's better to learn this before you need to know how to do it," McNeill said.

Victoria resident Cheryl LaGrega, whose granddaughter was a classmate and friend of Vicente, said her heart went out to the boy's family. She said she also dealt with the death of her child years before.

"The family probably went into shock. Whether you have 20 boys or one boy, you still have lost a child," LaGrega said. "Emotions don't always go how the grief book says."

In addition to recommending the boy's family join a grief support group, such as Compassionate Friends, she offered these words of encouragement to the family: "I truly believe when God wants you, He will take you. That's what got me through."

Victoria resident Joe Longoria said he began counseling his 11-year-old son, Jalen, as soon as he heard about Vicente's death.

"Death is a hard thing to cope with, but it is the reality of the way we live."

Jalen Longoria, a fourth-grader who rode the school bus with Vicente, recalled his friend.

"He was a good friend. He used to talk a lot on the bus."

Rolando Padron, an elder with Riverside Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, will speak at the boy's memorial services.

"We're all saddened by it," he said. "It's certainly tragic for the family, the school children and the teacher."



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