Mom Warns About Loose Cords After Daughter Accidentally Dies of Strangulation

A Missouri mom warns parents never to leave any loose cords, cables, or wires lying around their house, especially if they have young children who could get into an accident. Journy Harr and her family had this devastating experience with their 2-year-old daughter, Lilly Harr, who got strangled with the fan cord she was playing.

Journy recently shared photos of Lilly to raise awareness about her fatal accident, which happened in September 2020. The mom recalled that Lilly was with her three brothers in the same bedroom when one of her sons screamed for them to call 911.

Her husband, Randell Harr, rushed to their children's room and found Lilly with the fan cord. Their five-year-old son explained that the toddler was wrapping it around her neck multiple times when she tripped and then accidentally hanged herself.

"It was so fast - I can't stress that enough," Journy said, per The Mirror. She said that by the time she got to the room, Randell was able to take her down from the fan by the window. "She wasn't breathing at this point. She wasn't responsive at all." 

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Missouri Mom Had Concerns About the Fan

The Harr family has been redecorating their home, and Journy had her initial concerns when they were fitting the window fan in her daughter's room. She thought the children could easily push this out, and they could fall through the hole. It did not occur to her, however, that the kids could get entangled in the fan cord that hung down to be plugged in the outlet.

Randell did CPR on their daughter as they waited for the paramedics. Then the father rushed ahead to the hospital with Lilly while Journy was following them not far behind. However, halfway through the trip, her husband called her mobile phone to tell her the devastating news that Lilly didn't make it.

From what Journy understood after talking to the pathologist, it takes just a tiny amount of pressure for this accident to kill a small child. Thus, she told parents to ensure that exposed cords or wires in their houses are secure, hidden, and inaccessible to children.

Since the accident, Journy said they had installed pool noodles for cords around the house, which won't wrap so tightly around the neck and prevent terrible accidents with kids.

Toddler Dies from Window Blinds Cord Strangulation

In Wisconsin, a 2-year-old also died by strangulation from a window blinds cord. According to reports, his mother stepped out of the room where her son watched a movie for just a few minutes. She came back to find her son's horrific situation and was able to untangle him to do CPR. 

Unfortunately, like Lilly, the boy also didn't make it. Later, investigations showed small footprints by the side table and couches near the window, which the child used to climb to get to the blinds.

Data from National Electronic Injury Surveillance System from 2017 revealed that 600 kids a year end up in the emergency room for accidents linked to cords. Between 1990 to 2015, nearly 17,000 kids under six years old were treated for window blinds injury.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission also reminded parents to ensure no loose cords are accessible to small children. 

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