Officials: Boy’s death from poisoning an accident

By Mary Manning (contact), Tim Richardson (contact)

Published Tuesday, March 3, 2009 | 8:41 a.m.

Updated Tuesday, March 3, 2009 | 5:25 p.m.

Poisoning

The death of a 3-year-old North Las Vegas boy, Joseph D. Duhaylungsod, has been ruled an accident after he was apparently poisoned by a commercial grout cleaner.

The coroner said Duhaylungsod died from metabolic acidosis after drinking liquid ammonium bifluoride, a chemical that is toxic if swallowed, causes burns and is a breathing hazard. The chemical is used for cleaning and glass etching, according to chemical industry information.

North Las Vegas police responded at 11:19 p.m. Monday to Sunrise Hospital, 3186 South Maryland Parkway, after receiving a report from hospital officials that a boy had died as the result of poisoning, said Sgt. Tim Bedwell, spokesman for the North Las Vegas Police Department.

Police and child welfare officials are still investigating the case, Bedwell said.

Detectives said a preliminary investigation shows the boy drank the grout cleaner at his home in the 3800 block of Sorrowing Sparrow Court, west of Interstate 15 and north of Cheyenne Avenue. He was taken to the hospital at 5:57 p.m. Monday and died at about 10 p.m., Bedwell said.

Detectives and Child Protective Services are investigating the circumstances that led to the boy's death, but other children including teenagers were not removed from the home.

Bedwell said that parents need to ensure that household cleaners, solvents, paints and other chemicals found in homes are kept in their original containers. Household chemicals have warnings and instructions on what to do if the chemical is swallowed or gets on skin or in eyes, and most have child-proof caps.

"Everyone has things in the home that can be deadly to children," Bedwell said. A 3-year-old can get into anything."

Discussion: 2 comments so far…

By Babyboomer

3/3/09 at 11:04 a.m.

Suggest removal

The taste alone on your lips before anymore was swallowed would have stopped the child from going any further. I hope this case is nothing more than a tragic accident.
By purpleness93

6/2/09 at 5:40 p.m.

Suggest removal

The older brother of Joseph is one of my classmates at my high school. He really changed after this accident. It's just awful.