A 17-month-old boy from Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, has died after swallowing a button battery from a children's toy. Hugh McMahon passed away on 26 December, two days after the incident, following a 12-hour surgery and subsequent organ failure.
His father, Hugh McMahon, described discovering the toddler with laboured breathing and fading colour on Christmas Eve. Paramedics administered oxygen, and the child was rushed to University Hospital Wishaw before being transferred to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow for specialist care.
Doctors found a hole the size of a 5p coin burned in his heart, caused by the battery lodging in his oesophagus. Despite surgery, the child suffered severe brain damage and organ failure, leading to life support being withdrawn.
Mr McMahon believes the battery came from a VTech teething toy, which was missing one of its three button batteries. A VTech spokesperson said the company is working with authorities to investigate and takes customer safety seriously.
The family has launched a petition calling for a complete ban on button batteries, which they say are present in many household items. Mr McMahon stated, 'It's like handing your child a loaded gun.' Clare Adamson, MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw, has voiced support, urging greater safety awareness.
