Dad of girl killed by her Ottoman mattress speaks of heartbreak shedding each kids

The dad of a woman who died after getting trapped by her ottoman bed has spoken out. Helen Davey, 39, suffocated after a faulty spring led to her becoming stuck between the mattress and bed’s frame. Helen was found dead by Elizabeth, her teenage daughter, on June 7 at their home in Seaham, County Durham.

An inquest into her death found last month that one of the gas pistons in the bed failed, leading to a coroner issuing an urgent warning that such an incident could happen again. Mum of two Helen ran a home-based beauty business called All Dolled Up.

Senior coroner Jeremy Chipperfield said in his report after the inquest: “The deceased was leaning over the storage area of an ottoman-styled ‘gas-lift bed’ when the mattress platform descended unexpectedly, trapping her neck against the upper surface of the side panel of the bed’s base.

“Unable to free herself, she died of positional asphyxia.”

And now dad Robert Casson has opened up about his daughter, who was buried alongside the ashes of her 19-year-old brother Luke who died 13-years prior due to a fatal brain injury sustained in a moped crash with a telegraph pole.

He said: “Our hearts are broken as we bury our two beloved kids today. Helen, only 39, died 6 June 2024. Luke was 16 and died 21 May 2011.

“Both lost in tragic accidents and will be missed our whole lives. Our love and thanks go out to everyone who has contacted us with messages, cards and flowers. There are no words that cover it.”

And daughter Elizabeth earlier told the inquest at Crook Coroner’s Court: “I went upstairs, my mam’s bedroom door was wide open, and I saw her lying on her back with her head under the bed. Her legs were bent as if she was trying to get up. I dropped everything that I was holding and tried to lift the top of the bed off her head. The bed was no longer a soft close and could fall heavily if it was released.

“It was so heavy for me to lift it up and try to pull her out. I managed to lift it up enough to use my foot to support it. I feared that she was dead as she made no sound. I started CPR and noticed that she wasn’t breathing.”

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