Mother dies after being trapped and suffocated in own ottoman bed

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A mother of two tragically lost her life when her ottoman bed fell on her head and suffocated her.

Helen Davey, 39, tragically lost her life when she bent over the bed's storage compartment. The mattress suddenly fell and struck her on the head, pinning her between the mattress and the bed's base.

On June 7, the beautician was discovered at their home in Seaham, County Durham, by her 19-year-old daughter.

After investigating her death, which revealed that a faulty gas piston was responsible for raising the mattress, a coroner has raised concerns about the possibility of more fatalities unless measures are implemented to address potentially defective beds.

In a letter addressed to the Secretary of State for Trade and Business, the Office for Product Safety and Standards, and the Department for Business and Trade, senior coroner Jeremy Chipperfield noted, "As the inquest progressed, the information presented raised several troubling issues."

I believe there is a potential danger of more deaths happening if we don't take measures soon. Given the situation, it's my legal obligation to inform you about this.

"The issues at hand include the presence and utilization of gas piston bed mechanisms, which can pose a danger to safety if they fail."

In his report, he explained how Ms. Davey died, stating that she was bending over the storage area of a gas-lift bed with an ottoman design when the mattress platform suddenly lowered, pinning her neck against the top part of the bed's side panel.

Trapped and unable to escape, she succumbed to positional asphyxia. One of the two gas-lift pistons was malfunctioning.

Ottoman beds are versatile furniture items that serve both as a bed and a storage option. They come with a lifting mechanism that provides easy access to the space underneath the bed for storing items.