Emily Brown
A Florida mum has urged other parents to 'destroy' any toy boxes they might have at home after the devastating accidental death of her four-year-old twins.
Sadie Myers issued the warning after the tragedy unfolded on 1 September at her home in Jacksonville, Florida, where she lived with her husband, Donn, and her four children; two older sons and their younger twin siblings - brother and sister Aurora and Kellan Starr.
The mum came home from work to find all of her kids asleep, but at some point in the night the twins got up to play.
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It wasn't until the next morning that she realised they had climbed into their cedar toy chest and fallen asleep. During the night, the lid had closed on them.
"Something I did not know and I’m sure many others don’t know is that most wooden toy chests once closed are AIR TIGHT and also sound proof," the mum wrote in a Facebook post.
Tragically, the twins ran out of oxygen in the chest and passed away.
The family found the pair the next morning, at which point Sadie knew it was 'already too late'.
"It makes no sense to me and never will," the mum wrote, adding that she has to 'believe that something in this universe chose them specifically, maybe to protect them from some future tragedy, or maybe because their souls were too perfect for this world'.
Following the loss, Sadie urged other parents to recognise the dangers of chests like the ones her twins had.
She encouraged people to get rid of them, writing: "I hope if you have a toy box like this that you destroy it immediately!!!"
Sadie asked readers to keep the family in their 'hearts and prayers', while her sister has set up a GoFundMe to help raise money for the family.
"Please help me raise whatever it takes for these two amazing parents and their two remaining children to be able to grieve together without worrying about going back to work right away or stressing about coming up with money to pay bills or final expenses," organiser Deanna Myers wrote.
The GoFundMe page has exceeded its goal of $10,000 (£8,000), and has reached $34,900 (£27,900) at the time of writing.
Deanna described Sadie and Donn as 'wonderful parents', adding: "They couldn’t have known that this would happen or done anything to stop it. Four year old twins do so many silly things and they always do them together.
"This accident was one of those absolutely inconceivable things you can’t imagine or plan for or believe was even possible."
If you'd like to donate to the fundraiser, you can do so here.
If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact Cruse Bereavement Care via their national helpline on 0808 808 1677