"They pulled out all but a couple stuffed animals, I guess they left some to keep it comfy in there, then they laid inside head to toe with one arm each over their twin and I’m assuming said 'good night kell kell' and 'night night sissy,'" said their mom.
A Florida family is grieving the loss of four-year-old twins who authorities say were killed after suffocating inside a cedar toy chest.
Kellan and Aurora Starr were discovered inside their toy chest by an older sibling after a frantic search for the two when they were not in their beds according to the twins' mother, Sadie Meyes.
"Mommy I found them! They are so silly just sleeping in the toy box," the twins' brother said upon finding them in the toy chest according to Myers.
Something did not seem right though said Myers, who called 911. Police and emergency responders rushed to the scene, but by then it was too late to help the children.
Myers is now sharing her story in hopes that no other parent ever has to deal with this devastating loss.
In a Facebook post, Myers said that the twins were always finding new spots to hide.
"At some point early that morning the twins woke each other up and decided they wanted to play in their room rather than sleep, they do this a lot, it’s just a twin thing I guess," said Myers.
She went on to note that she and her husband could often find "proof of their late night playing when we get up in the morning," based on where they had dragged their toys to hideout.
"Friday night the weird place they decided to snuggle up and go back to sleep was in their cedar toy chest that we use to store all their stuffed animals. They pulled out all but a couple stuffed animals, I guess they left some to keep it comfy in there, then they laid inside head to toe with one arm each over their twin and I’m assuming said 'good night kell kell' and 'night night sissy,'" Myers said. "Sometime during their sleep one of them must have moved or kicked during a dream and it caused the lid of this old wooden cedar chest to close."
Unbeknownst to Myers, the toy chest was airtight once the cover had been closed.
"So as they slept, all snuggled up together, they slowly ran out of oxygen within a couple of hours and passed away," Myers said. "They never even knew it was happening. There was no sudden gasp for air, it was a very slow transition from sleep to passing on."
A GoFundMe created to help the family has raised $27,000 for the children's funeral costs, well beyond the $10,000 goal.
Myers said she and her husband are now focusing their energy on giving her two older boys "the most amazing lives, to not let this cause any life long damage to their mental state."
