1-year-old chokes to death on watermelon at day care, Georgia police say
A 1-year-old choked to death after he was fed watermelon at a Georgia day care, police told news outlets.
The Kids Nest Learning Center in Brunswick has since closed its doors following an emergency order from the state’s Department of Early Care and Learning, WJXT reported.
Police said Jamal Bryant was eating watermelon when he started to choke Tuesday, May 21, according to The Brunswick News. He was rushed to a hospital emergency room where he died, police told the newspaper.
McClatchy News reached out to the Kids Nest Learning Center on May 24 and was awaiting a response. Glynn County police declined to comment on the investigation.
“It feels like I’m living a nightmare that I cannot wake up from,” the boy’s mother, Taylor Hicks, told WJXT. “I cannot wake up from this. And a part of me does not believe this is happening to me.”
Staff at the learning center tried helping the baby before he was taken to a hospital, WJCL reported, citing Glynn County police. Jamal’s parents are now searching for answers as police investigate.
It’s not the first time Kids Nest Learning Center has been under review.
In 2022, the then-director was charged with battery after she was accused of hitting a toddler in the face and knocking the girl to the ground, according to WTLV.
Some staff members also didn’t complete first aid and CPR training, WJXT reported, citing 2023 inspection reports from the Department of Early Care and Learning.
The learning center has two days to appeal the Department of Early Care and Learning’s emergency closure, according to WJCL. If it chooses not to, the facility will remain closed pending an investigation.
Brunswick is about an 80-mile drive southwest from Savannah.
This story was originally published May 24, 2024 at 11:41 AM with the headline "1-year-old chokes to death on watermelon at day care, Georgia police say."