A dad has warned parents after his young son tragically died while playing a game on the stairs.
Logan Davis lost his life when he became trapped in a dressing gown cord he used to pretend to abseil down the stairs.
The 12-year-old was found wrapped in the cord by his older brother on the morning of September 18 last year while his dad and step-mum were out.
He was without oxygen for around half an hour and, once taken to hospital, was diagnosed with a severe hypoxic brain injury.
Logan, who attended Our Lady Queen of Peace school in Skelmersdale, Lancashire, died four days later.
His dad, Martin Davis, had removed the dressing gown cord after finding his children playing with it, but the children soon replaced it, an inquest at Preston Coroner's Court heard on Thursday (February 17).
"They had tied the dressing gown cord on the halfway landing and they used to play with it as if they were abseiling and swinging on it," Mr Davis explained.
In a statement to the coroner Mr Davis described Logan as a "fun and active boy" who loved climbing trees and riding his bike.
Although he had some learning difficulties and had struggled to learn to read he was happy and healthy and loved his family.
"He used to love going on bike rides, climbing trees, playing football and going to the skatepark," Mr Davis said in his statement.
"He was always out of the house playing."
The inquest heard that on Saturday September 18 in 2021 Mr Davis and his partner Joanne were out buying fidget toys for their children when they got a text from Logan's older brother. The couple raced home and Logan was initially taken to Ormskirk General Hospital before being transferred to Alder Hey in Liverpool.
Assistant Coroner Laura Nash said doctors discovered Logan had suffered a significant brain injury and there was brain stem dysfunction as a result of him being without oxygen for 30 minutes. An MRI scan confirmed brain stem death and Logan died on September 22 at 1.39pm.
The inquest heard that his parents, as well as the coroner, had given permission for his organs to be donated to help other children, reports Lancashire Live.
Although the coroner considered whether or not it was possible that Logan had intended to harm himself there was no evidence of this and his death was deemed an accident.
Logan's teacher Mark Taylor described him as "pleasant, polite and popular" and said he had a cheeky smile and loved playing with Lego.
"Logan needed support to articulate his thoughts but he had no thoughts of self-harm, depression or anxiety," Mr Taylor added in his statement.
Joanna Birch, a specialist nurse who looks into any sudden or unexplained deaths in children, said that although life had "changed at home after Logan's mum had moved some distance away", there was no indication or reason why Logan would have ended his life.
A police investigation echoed those conclusions and found that Logan's much older brother who was in charge of the children while their parents were away was mature and a "really nice lad".
Neighbours confirmed the children were well looked-after and social services had no concerns or involvement with the family.
Giving evidence to the inquest Mr Davis said Logan was "a typical lad".
When asked what Logan's older brother thought had happened to him Mr Davis said: "He said he thinks he was climbing it and it has gone wrong. He was excited we were going to come back and bring toys for him."
Concluding Logan's death was accidental the coroner said: "Logan was 12-years-old, he was a boy's boy, always out playing, climbing trees and on his bike and had a good group of friends and was doing really well at school.
"He was obviously very close to his family and well cared for. It is more likely than not that this was an accident."
After the inquest Logan's dad and step-mum urged parents to keep an eye on their children and to be aware that accidents can happen when they are least expected.
"We never thought this would happen to us," Mr Davis said.
