6 Year Old Dies Falling From Chair With Scissors

[White Rain]

Tragic and heartbreaking.

VERONA BEACH, N.Y. — A 6-year-old girl reaching for scissors on top of a refrigerator died when she fell from a chair and the blades stabbed her in her neck, police said.
Kayleigh C. Cochis wanted the scissors to cut off gum stuck in her hair.
She was standing on a wheeled, office-style chair when it moved and she lost her balance Friday night, according to state police investigator Dennis Dougherty.
She was pronounced dead at a hospital.
The girl's parents and her 5-year-old brother were in the house about 25 miles northeast of Syracuse, but no one saw Kayleigh fall, Dougherty said.
Counseling will be available Monday for her classmates at Sylvan-Verona Beach Elementary School, principal Moira Yardley said.
"We are deeply, deeply saddened by the tragedy," said Moira Yardley, the school's principal. "Our hearts go out to the family."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,271919,00.html

 

[southcitymom]

My prayers to this family. That's just awful and random.

 

[White Rain]

I am guessing since no one saw her fall no one knew she had gum in her hair. The poor thing probably thought she would be in trouble so she went for the scissors herself.

 

[kahskye]

What a terrible tragedy! I'm not sure why the scissors were being kept on top of the refrigerator and not in a drawer. Too bad this little girl didn't go to her mom. Peanut butter works great on taking gum out of hair.

 

[pedinurse]

ugh, i can guess why they were on the fridge. the parents were trying to keep the scissors away from the kids, so they put them on the fridge.

that backfired.

what a horrible freak accident. I have a daughter who is 6. i can't imagine.

 

[englishleigh]

How horrible!!!! Poor little girl. Prayers for her parents. They thought they were doing the right thing, and chances are, they were. Just awful...

 

[kahskye]

ugh, i can guess why they were on the fridge. the parents were trying to keep the scissors away from the kids, so they put them on the fridge.

that backfired.

what a horrible freak accident. I have a daughter who is 6. i can't imagine.

Yeah, I guess that's the reason but at six, one would think she had already been familiar w/ scissors. Usually at three children are given scissors to help develop their fine motor skills. Of course, I'm talking the blunt tip and under supervision. There are books where the paper has dotted lines to follow w/ the scissors, advancing to curves as the child's skills improve. Most schools require children to have scissors starting in K5.

What about the cooking utensils such as knives? Surely those weren't also kept on the refrigerator.

 

[Dark Knight]

Prayers for her family, as I am sure they are blaming themselves in some way. May she RIP.

 

[philamena]

I am guessing since no one saw her fall no one knew she had gum in her hair. The poor thing probably thought she would be in trouble so she went for the scissors herself.

Sounds like a likely scenario. Of course she may have been an independent child who wanted to get the gum out herself. What a sad story.

 

[White Rain]

Yeah, I guess that's the reason but at six, one would think she had already been familiar w/ scissors. Usually at three children are given scissors to help develop their fine motor skills. Of course, I'm talking the blunt tip and under supervision. There are books where the paper has dotted lines to follow w/ the scissors, advancing to curves as the child's skills improve. Most schools require children to have scissors starting in K5.

What about the cooking utensils such as knives? Surely those weren't also kept on the refrigerator.

Not blaming the parents here, but I agree with you 100%..I was taught that from as long as I remember, not to run with scissors, (yes, I read the book with that title!) also it was drilled in my head not to run with a toothbrush in my mouth, etc...

 

[cheko1]

Not blaming the parents here, but I agree with you 100%..I was taught that from as long as I remember, not to run with scissors, (yes, I read the book with that title!) also it was drilled in my head not to run with a toothbrush in my mouth, etc...

That just makes me feel so bad. The parents must be devastated........

 

[Nore]

Not blaming the parents here, but I agree with you 100%..I was taught that from as long as I remember, not to run with scissors, (yes, I read the book with that title!) also it was drilled in my head not to run with a toothbrush in my mouth, etc...

--------------------

Or a sucker.I always bought the suckers with the loop "sticks". My God what a tragedy this is.I feel so sorry for the little girl and her family.

 

[bakerprune64]

ugh, i can guess why they were on the fridge. the parents were trying to keep the scissors away from the kids, so they put them on the fridge.

that backfired.

what a horrible freak accident. I have a daughter who is 6. i can't imagine.

Everytime my SIL comes over to visit with my nephew (who is 5, almost 6) she puts teh scissors on top of the fridge. Of course days later I am searching my house high and Lo looking for them until I remember that she ahd been there. We never have put the knives up there. This is just an unfortunate accident.

 

[txsvicki]

ugh, i can guess why they were on the fridge. the parents were trying to keep the scissors away from the kids, so they put them on the fridge.

that backfired.

what a horrible freak accident. I have a daughter who is 6. i can't imagine.

You are probably right. I put my kitchen scissors and knives up in the cabinet to keep them away from the kids, but now I'm wondering if I should lock them up. I worry about the same things happening with pencils and constantly warn them about running, pointing, or taking them away from the work area.

 

[Dena]

I don't put my scissors in drawers since my son can reach them. I don't even have my utensils in drawers, I have the tray in a higher cabinet where plates or cups would usually. In what should be the utensil drawer I have his little bowls and sippy cups & lids.

I can think of so many scenarios where my son could get into something. He could climb up on the counter and get into the cabinets and grab a pair of scissors and fall.
I won't blame the parents at all. They put them up high where they thought they would be safe. It's not as though the girl had them already within reach and took off with them.

It bothers me that there are people (not here, but in general) that think we overprotect our children. I had people tell me we shouldn't plug our outlets or put safety locks on our cabinets. "How else will they learn?" Yet when something does happen, it is wondered why the parents didn't protect them more. My son will be 3 in July and we still use gates, we still have our outlets covered, I still have locks on my cabinets and covers on the doorknobs. He has no access to the front door, the patio doors, or the stairs. The bathroom doors stay closed. If I could put the darn kid in a plastic bubble, I would do that too.
With all that, I still have left a pair of scissors on my desk or a knife on the counter after opening a package.
I won't blame the parents. I have nothing but intense sadness and sympathy for them.

 

[GraceBlue]

Oh my gosh, how horrible. My heart goes out to her family.

 

[MREG2]

I am guessing since no one saw her fall no one knew she had gum in her hair. The poor thing probably thought she would be in trouble so she went for the scissors herself.

That's exactly what I was thinking... This poor baby and her family. Prayers for them all!!!

 

[MREG2]

Yeah, I guess that's the reason but at six, one would think she had already been familiar w/ scissors. Usually at three children are given scissors to help develop their fine motor skills. Of course, I'm talking the blunt tip and under supervision. There are books where the paper has dotted lines to follow w/ the scissors, advancing to curves as the child's skills improve. Most schools require children to have scissors starting in K5.

What about the cooking utensils such as knives? Surely those weren't also kept on the refrigerator.

It doesn't matter how familiar children are with scissors. They are still a sharp object that should be kept way out of reach. The parents (and myself) thought they were but this child was determined to get them (but like WhiteRain said the little girl probably thought she would be in trouble).

My 4 yr old can use scissors but sure as h*ll doesn't mean I'm going to leave them out around the house. And yes, we have baby locks on the drawers in the kitchen (we also have a 2 yr old).

Who exactly are you trying to place blame on here?

 

[MREG2]

I don't put my scissors in drawers since my son can reach them. I don't even have my utensils in drawers, I have the tray in a higher cabinet where plates or cups would usually. In what should be the utensil drawer I have his little bowls and sippy cups & lids.

I can think of so many scenarios where my son could get into something. He could climb up on the counter and get into the cabinets and grab a pair of scissors and fall.
I won't blame the parents at all. They put them up high where they thought they would be safe. It's not as though the girl had them already within reach and took off with them.

It bothers me that there are people (not here, but in general) that think we overprotect our children. I had people tell me we shouldn't plug our outlets or put safety locks on our cabinets. "How else will they learn?" Yet when something does happen, it is wondered why the parents didn't protect them more. My son will be 3 in July and we still use gates, we still have our outlets covered, I still have locks on my cabinets and covers on the doorknobs. He has no access to the front door, the patio doors, or the stairs. The bathroom doors stay closed. If I could put the darn kid in a plastic bubble, I would do that too.
With all that, I still have left a pair of scissors on my desk or a knife on the counter after opening a package.
I won't blame the parents. I have nothing but intense sadness and sympathy for them.

Great post... We do all the above too. One can never be too careful. But even then accidents happen. My heart breaks for this family.

My MIL told about a story she read when our oldest was still a baby. I don't know if it was a local story or not. Apparently the mom was loading/unloading the dishwasher and her child (not sure of the age) tripped and fell and got stabbed my a fork that was still in the utensil holder. My MIL lectured to make sure that we put our forks and knives blades down, which we did. But still the story unnerved us all.... Accidents just happen, unfortunately.

 

[Dena]

Great post... We do all the above too. One can never be too careful. But even then accidents happen. My heart breaks for this family.

My MIL told about a story she read when our oldest was still a baby. I don't know if it was a local story or not. Apparently the mom was loading/unloading the dishwasher and her child (not sure of the age) tripped and fell and got stabbed my a fork that was still in the utensil holder. My MIL lectured to make sure that we put our forks and knives blades down, which we did. But still the story unnerved us all.... Accidents just happen, unfortunately.

I heard a similar story but with a knife. It is something I always keep in mind with our dishwasher.

I wonder if they make locks for dishwashers? I'm now thinking it wouldn't be too hard for my son to get into the dishwasher and get a knife. Although I don't leave him out of my sight for very long... my mind always races with this stuff.