Fire officials say an 8-year-old girl suffocated Wednesday in her Oregon home. Family members say she was trying to make her baby brother laugh with a Mylar balloon.
Jaina Vue McGloghlon went to bed around 9 p.m. Wednesday. She had a large Mylar balloon in the shape of the number three in her bedroom. It was left over from her dad’s birthday party.
The girl's grandmother, Pat McGloghlon, was home when the incident happened. Twenty minutes after Jaina went to bed, her dad found her with the balloon over her head and not breathing, KATU reports
"My son went in to check on her and all he saw was a foot sticking out of her bed. Then he took the covers off and found the balloon on her head," Pat McGloghlon told KATU. "He put her on the floor and cut the balloon off her head. He started CPR and we called 911."
Firefighters arrived around 9:30 p.m. and tried to revive Jaina for an hour, but it was too late.
“We all want to turn back yesterday and start over again,” said Pat McGloghlon.
According to Inside Edition, officials believe Jaina was trying to make her 18-month-old brother, Jacen, laugh by putting the balloon over her head. The two share a bedroom.
“The combination of a tired child and inhaling helium with no oxygen caused her to fall asleep and eventually passed away,” her mother said.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission says balloons are the leading cause of suffocation death.
Family members called Jaina joyful.
“She was just such an amazing little girl,” said her uncle Donny McGloghlon. “We just want to remember her and how great a little spirit she had.”
Family members have started a memorial fund for Jaina. If you would like to donate, click here.
About the Author