How a packet of chips led to the tragic death of a five-year-old child
- By Asim Mallick -
- Jun 17, 2026

ANDHRA PRADESH: A five-year-old boy apparently lost his life to a packet of chips in India.
A sudden scene unfolded in Gooty, part of Ananthapuramu district in Andhra Pradesh. A child named Farhan bought a pack of chips at a neighborhood store.
Biting into the snack, Farhan took in the tiny figure tucked inside the bag without knowing.
A small breath wouldn’t come, no matter what the family tried inside their home. When nothing worked, off they went – car speeding toward a hospital close by. The child never caught air again, his body giving out long before doctors could see him.
A few minutes passed before officers showed up, beginning a full review.
Following the tragic death, concern has grown among the general public because of what happened; doctors and city officials now warn families to think twice before buying treats with little pieces inside. These bits can block a child’s airway without warning.
Indian police are still investigating to find negligence by the manufacturer.
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Earlier, Carly Dunbar’s child Joshua sadly died on his eighth birthday in what has been called ‘the most tragic of accidents’. The young boy was found unresponsive in his room with a number 8-shaped balloon over his head on April 27, 2024.
After he was rushed to the hospital, a post-mortem examination concluded that Joshua’s death was “consistent with asphyxia involving a helium balloon”.
Opening up about the horrifying incident, Carly and husband Jamie appeared on Tuesday’s (May 20) episode of This Morning.
Describing the moments before the incident, Carly told hosts Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard: ”He (Joshua) went upstairs and took the balloon with him. I came up after him and went and had a little chat with him, he was just sat up on his bed with the balloon, watching the TV – nice and calm.”
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Viably moved, she continued: “I told him his dad (Jamie’s dad) would be up and going to put all his presents away. And then his dad came up, literally minutes later…”
Jamie jumped in: “I said bye to my dad at night and then came up and found him. At first, I’d seen the balloon, half-deflated.
“It took me a split second to realise Joshua was lying down with the balloon over his head, so I had to get him off his bed and physically rip the balloon off him.”
