THE mum of a toddler which ended up with a "toilet seat necklace" after yanking it down over his head, has thanked the six fire fighters which helped free her son from the Valentine's Day mishap.
Mother-of-seven Michaela Chown, from West Hill, near Ottery St Mary dialled 999 after her two-year-old son Micky got a child's trainer toilet seat stuck on his head and then pulled it down around his neck.
Little Micky, who turns three this month, was completely unharmed in the misadventure and, although a little embarrassed by the whole ordeal, spent most of the time giggling – until his older brother asked if his sibling may need to have his head chopped off.
Full time mum Michaela, who is trained in paediatrician first aid, said she was "utterly embarrassed" to have to call the fire brigade, but, after some recent sadness in the household, said the event brightened their moods.
She said she wanted to share her experience in case any other family encounters the same problem with their own inquisitive offspring.
"We're completely and utterly embarrassed," said the 40-year-old. "But it was pure comedy at the time, it was one of those completely ridiculous things that happen.
"Children learn through their mistakes – he'll never do it again!
"It will be one to bring up on his wedding day!"
Michaela explained that her potty trained son had asked to go to "for a wee" by himself, quite a grown up moment in his young life, then, moments later waddled in with his pants round his ankles and the luxury padded seat on his head laughing, before yanking it down to his neck.
"He's such a charming lovely little boy, and very bright, it was just a silly thing – as a family we thought we'd seen it all over the years!" continued Michaela who said three of her children, aged 15, 10, and five, as well as their dad, were all trying to help removed the seat.
"We were all giggling trying to get it off but realised it was completely stuck," she explained.
"The only time Micky became upset was when his brother asked if he'd be stuck with it forever.
"We tried and tried, and when we realised it was not coming off I did a Google search to see if this had happened to anyone else's child and read that others called the fire brigade who cut it free.
"When I rang 999 the call handler asked which emergency service I wanted to speak to and I said I didn't know.
"I felt really bad that we had to call the fire crew out on a Saturday evening, particularly as they're all volunteers and it wasn't an emergency, but what else was I supposed to do?
"So I offered to come and meet them somewhere, but they arrived really quickly."
Michaela explained that upon their arrival, one of the crew soon realised that under the padding were screws which meant a section of the seat could be removed.
"This is probably the silliest thing of all," she continued. "But luckily they didn't need to saw it off as we'd feared.
"The crew took it seriously and dealt with it brilliantly, we are so grateful to them."
She added: "One of the funniest comments I read was from my friend who said Micky had got his mum six fire men for Valentine's Day!"
After the Echo broke the news on its website about the emergency call-out, the story went global with media outlets in Australia and India running the report as well as the Metro and BBC Radio Two.
Michaela laughed about being "famous" for the incident.
But, the busy mum admitted this wasn't the first mishap to happen in her family and recalled the time when her then five-year-old daughter shut her nine-year-old brother in a cupboard before shutting the front door of the house, locking him inside.
With ladders and scaffolding, a local tree surgeon was able to get in through an upstairs window and free the youngster.
Michaela said that child seats should come with a clear warning of the risks.
"Children are inquisitive by nature," she said.
"This could be one for Dragon's Den – designing a child's seat that can't get stuck on a child's head.
"To have to call the emergency services is just ridiculous."
