NEWS.AU.COM – There are calls for warnings on helium canisters to be improved following a young mum’s instant death after she inhaled the commonly used gas at her child’s birthday.
New Zealand woman, Faith Waterman Batistich, died after she breathed in the colourless, odourless element directly from the canister in September 2022.
When inhaled, helium displaces oxygen in the lungs and causes low blood oxygen, known as hypoxia, which can cause damage and ultimately death.
An inquest into the 20-year-old’s death has now found Ms Batistich was “unaware of the inherent dangers of inhaling helium”, and called for warning labels on canisters to be made clearer.
Ms Batistich’s twin sister Eden Waterman described the moment the young mum – who was celebrating her daughter’s second birthday on the day she died – knew she had made a grave mistake.
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The party had been inhaling helium from the balloons to make their voices high when someone suggested doing it directly from the helium canister.
Eden claimed “it took some convincing” before Faith stepped up, alleging ing that just as she inhaled, another person turned up the flow on the canister.
“It went too fast and kind of shot her in the back of the neck,” Eden told the NZ Herald.
“Her last words were literally, ‘Oh s**t’ and she dropped.
“I was just, like, in shock. I kind of just froze and it was like, ‘what the f**k, what am I seeing? Like, is this for real?’ I thought she was putting it on at the start.”
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Family gave Ms Batistich CPR, who lived in a small town located 18 kilometres southeast of Tauranga in the Western Bay of Plenty, for 45 minuted before ambos arrived.
But Eden said her sister “went blue instantly”, adding “nothing” anyone did – including emergency services – “got her back” …