Two-year-old Jacob Jenkins has died after choking on a grape at a Pizza Hut restaurant in Hartlepool in the UK.
The toddler was eating at the restaurant with his parents when the tragic incident occurred.
Jacob was rushed to hospital after the fruit became lodged in his throat. He was placed in a medically-induced coma, but later died in his parents’ arms as supporters released balloons for the tot.
Jacob’s mum, Abigail Wilson, wrote on Facebook about choosing to turn off her son’s life support.
“Jacob grew his angel wings at 7pm as people let off their balloons.
“We chose this time to let him go as we knew everyone would be thinking of him and have him in their thoughts.
“There was nothing we could do. Jacob died in mine and his dad’s arms with his family by his side.
“We then went outside and released our own balloons.”
As a result of Jacob’s tragic death Pizza Hut have announced that they will stop serving grapes in their UK restaurants.
“As a mark of respect, and in light of the tragic death of Jacob Jenkins, we have removed grapes from our menu with immediate effect.
“The well-being of our guests is always our number one priority, and our hearts go out to his family.”
Earlier Jacob’s mum wrote on a Go Fund Me page set up for the family, thanking everyone for their support including the staff at the Pizza Hut restaurant where the incident occurred.
“Everyone was great and helped us the best they could, but the grape was stuck and the only way of getting it out was through the paramedics using surgical scissors,” she wrote.
“Jacob was ‘gone’ for around 30 minutes, the air support and paramedics helped him get a heart beat on the way to James Cook.”
Jacob’s death is an awful reminder to parents of the choking risks some foods pose to young children.
It is not recommend that babies or toddlers eat any foods smaller than a D-sized battery due to the choking risk these foods pose.
These foods include lollies, raw apple pieces, pieces of meat, nuts, raw carrot, uncooked peas, popcorn, grapes, hot dogs and sausages.
Our thoughts are with Jacob’s family as they come to terms with the loss of their precious little boy.
