A grieving father makes an urgent call for change after his young son chokes to death on a grape.
Brian Bwoga was at Burns Beach in Western Australia with his one-year-old son Zaire on January 15 when one of the boy’s friends offered him a grape to eat.
Mr Bwoga noticed something was wrong when his little boy approached him and grabbed his neck. He sprang into action and performed CPR.
The loving father recalled that his son turned blue and had difficulty breathing.
‘I tried CPR, but nothing came of it. “He was hugging me so tight,” she said. 7NEWS.
‘He gave me one last look, a smile and passed away in my arms. ‘He died in my arms.’
Police and paramedics tried to save her son, but were unable to revive him.
“I have a background as a chef, so I’m always one of those parents who cuts everything,” Mr. Bwoga said.
“But he was playing with his friend, and his friend just shared the grape, and that was it.”
Zaire was just weeks shy of his second birthday when he choked to death on a grape that another little boy had offered him.
There are currently no labeling requirements related to choking hazards in Australia, but this is something Zaire’s father (pictured) would like to see change.
After his son’s death, Mr Bwoga fell into depression. While searching for answers, he was surprised to discover the high number of choking incidents occurring in Australia.
It found that there were 134 deaths attributed to suffocation and suffocation among children aged four and under in 2021-2022.
Additionally, during the same period there were two infant deaths due to food blocking the airways.
There are currently no labeling requirements related to choking hazards in Australia, but this is something Zaire’s father would like to see change.
He launched an online petition urging authorities to require warning labels on packaged grapes and signs at stores selling grapes in bulk.
“Warning labels or a sign when purchasing grapes is a pretty simple thing,” Mr Bwoga wrote in the petition.
‘As far as cost is concerned, a sign posted where buyers can see when they select their grapes is a one-time expense that can last for several years.
‘It is an invaluable service if it saves a life.
“Ideally, supermarkets and big chains would consider putting choking warning labels on grapes, like they do on toys and other things.”
