A 5-year-old boy suffocated to death after apparently getting locked in a washer dryer at his family's apartment in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, police said Sunday.
According to police, the boy was found unconscious in the drum of the front loader machine by his father at around 3 p.m. Saturday, Fuji TV reported. His father called 119 and the boy was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
Police believe the boy got into the washer dryer, which is one meter tall, 70 cms wide and 60 cms deep, and the door shut, locking him in. The door cannot be opened from the inside. There was no water in the machine.
Police said the boy’s mother was out at the time and his father was taking a nap with his son. When the father woke up, he couldn’t locate his son and looked for him before finding him in the washer dryer.
A 7-year-old boy died in Tokyo in a similar accident in 2015 and there have been calls made for manufacturers to prevent the door from locking automatically when it is closed.
Source: ANNnewsCH
