Most parents are aware of the choking dangers represented by grapes – their shape means that once lodged in a toddler’s throat, they are not easily removed. The added tragedy of this story is that father Brian Bwoga is a trained chef, who knew to cut fruit for children. However, on this occasion, someone else gave his son uncut grapes upon which he choked. Little Zaza sadly passed away in his father’s arms. Abdominal thrusts were unable to save him.
“I left home with a beach bag and left with a body bag,” said Mr Bwoga. “It happened so quick. Within a few minutes he was gone. My son Alex is traumatised. He misses his brother so much and I don’t know how to fix it.”
A truly horrific story. Mr Bwoga is rightly campaigning for warning labels on items such as grapes in order to try and prevent such tragedies happening to others. Our mission to ensure the widespread presence LifeVac® devices within the community will help provide additional protection, with LifeVac® having successfully removed objects such as grapes and marbles from toddlers’ throats.
In fact, LifeVac’s 478th life saved (back in 2022) was a 3-year-old boy in the US who had choked on a full grape. The child was unable to breathe or make a sound. His mother called an ambulance before utilising the family’s LifeVac®. It cleared the fruit from the child’s airway on just the second attempt.
“This device saved my son’s life. I’m so glad I decided to purchase it. I will definitely recommend this device to all my friends and family. We are so thankful the family made the decision to have LifeVac as a backup option especially as first responders never arrived.”
We pray for more stories to end like this second example, as more families and organisations choose to purchase LifeVac® devices. Follow the link below to be a part of a safer future.