More than 60 children under the age of five who were taken to hospital for X-rays after a scare involving a button battery at their nursery have been given the all-clear.
A broken toy with an unknown number of button cell batteries missing was discovered at Bli Bli’s Greenspace childcare centre on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast on Wednesday.
Staff immediately contacted emergency services amid fears that at least one of the children may have swallowed the deadly devices.
The toy in question is believed not to have come from the facility and was purchased from the daycare by a child.
Paramedics assessed 64 children aged between 2 and 5 years and arranged with Queensland Health for their parents to collect them and take them to hospital.
The children were X-rayed and all tests since then have come back negative for the dangerous battery. 9 News reported.
“All children were assessed and there were no reported cases of ingestion,” a Queensland Ambulance spokesman said.
The daycare purchased metal detectors to help search for the missing batteries, but they found nothing.
A broken toy with an unknown number of button cells missing was found at Greenspace childcare centre on the Sunshine Coast
Button cell batteries are found in many household items and are very common in children’s products. If swallowed, they can be a “life-threatening emergency.”
The centre’s staff and parents have been praised for their quick action.
“I commend the parents for all of this, it would have been a daunting phone call for the parents to receive information about what happened, but the child care center was very transparent with them,” said paramedic James Mayfield.
Parents were also quick to praise the child care center for the way the staff handled the situation.
“You’re not supposed to mess with button batteries… We were getting updates on the app, we were getting phone calls, it was all amazing,” said parent Tahnee Tuckerman.
Three Australian children have died from swallowing button batteries in the past decade.
Three Australian children have died from swallowing batteries in the past decade, including Brittney Conway (pictured)
Brittney Conway, a Queensland girl, was just three years old when she swallowed a button battery in 2020. She died three weeks later.
Mr Mayfield said: 7 News It was because of the severity of the batteries that paramedics decided to take a “no risk, no chance” approach on Wednesday.
The paramedic said the incident is a good reminder for parents and caregivers to assess any potential risks in their home, as batteries can be found in many items, including children’s toys.
Mr Mayfield said swallowing a button battery was a “life-threatening emergency” and parents should seek medical help immediately.
Symptoms when someone swallows a button battery include abdominal pain, chest pain, and gastrointestinal bleeding.
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