The mother of 8-year-old Joshua Dunbar is urgently warning other parents to avoid a common party decoration — a warning born from the most unimaginable tragedy that took her little boy’s life on what should have been a day of joy.
Joshua, a bright, energetic boy with sparkling blue eyes and a cheeky smile, had just celebrated his eighth birthday surrounded by balloons, laughter, and love. But just hours after the celebration, everything changed.
On April 27, 2024, Joshua was found alone in his bedroom, unresponsive, with a large helium balloon — shaped as the number eight to mark his special day — draped over his head. Despite frantic efforts by his family and paramedics, his heart could not be restarted.
“It was absolutely traumatic. You can’t erase it from your mind,” his mother Carly shared. “I hear the screams, the sirens, the doctor’s words — ‘We’re really sorry.’ It felt like it was time for him.”
In those heartbreaking final moments, Carly and Joshua’s father held his hands and told him, “If your angel wings are ready, then go in peace. We’re here with you all the way.” Minutes later, Joshua was gone — as if waiting for his parents to say goodbye.
At the inquest, the coroner confirmed Joshua’s cause of death was suffocation caused by the helium balloon — a devastating accident no parent expects.
Now, Carly is pleading with families everywhere: please, be cautious with balloons. A simple decoration can turn deadly in an instant. Joshua’s story is a heartbreaking reminder to protect our children from hidden dangers — even on their happiest days.
Though helium itself isn’t toxic, Coroner Andre Rebello told the Liverpool Echo that the gas had dangerously displaced the oxygen Joshua needed to breathe.
“The helium prevented oxygen from reaching his body, and without oxygen, life cannot be sustained for more than a few minutes. What began as a joyful celebration ended in unimaginable tragedy,” Rebello said solemnly.
Calling it “one of the most tragic of accidents,” he reflected, “Anyone with a heart wonders what Joshua was doing in that moment. Perhaps he didn’t realize there was no air inside the balloon, or maybe he was trying to change his voice by inhaling helium. No one knows for sure.”
“He was just a little boy playing in his room — and it had fatal consequences,” Rebello added. “A child’s death is every parent’s worst nightmare.”
In the heartbreaking days following her son’s death, Carly turned to social media with a powerful plea, urging families to avoid helium balloons.
“There is no cure for a broken heart or the pain of losing a child,” she wrote in a heartfelt Facebook post, shared by the Daily Mail. “Please trust me when I say: do not buy helium balloons for your children. Every day since, I’ve hated myself for buying that balloon that took our boy. I would never want another family to endure this hell. Please, stick with air-filled balloons.”
“Hand on my heart, I would never want another child to lose their life, or another family to endure the pain we feel every single day,” Carly said with unwavering conviction.
Though her world has been shattered, Carly hopes Joshua’s tragic death will not be in vain. She is determined to transform her family’s heartbreak into a life-saving message — a plea for parents everywhere to recognize the hidden dangers that no one ever expects and to protect their children before it’s too late.
“It’s pure torture, and it doesn’t get easier — not even a little,” Carly shares painfully. “If just one, two, or three people stop and really listen to what I’m saying and choose not to buy helium balloons, then that’s one child’s life saved.”
She emphasizes, “That’s the whole point — stopping this from happening to another child. The only way to do that is to avoid helium balloons altogether. Just go with the air-filled ones — they look just as beautiful.”
So next time you’re planning a celebration, pause for a moment and think twice before filling the room with floating decorations. It could make all the difference.
