Toddler dies when dresser tips over

A 2-year-old girl was fatally crushed by an antique dresser while trying to reach one of her toys.

On Jan. 8, Helena Cochrane was climbing on the open drawers of an 80-pound “antique dresser” when it fell on top of her, crushing her to death just days before her third birthday. 

“The guilt and shame has all but consumed me, knowing that if I had taken the precautions of anchoring this dresser, my baby would still be here and her sister would still have her best friend,” the child's mother Taryn Cochrane reportedly wrote on social media.

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Larry Adams | Editor

Larry Adams is a Chicago-based writer and editor who writes about how things get done. A former wire service and community newspaper reporter, Larry is an award-winning writer with more than three decades of experience. In addition to writing about woodworking, he has covered science, metrology, metalworking, industrial design, quality control, imaging, Swiss and micromanufacturing . He was previously a Tabbie Award winner for his coverage of nano-based coatings technology for the automotive industry. Larry volunteers for the historic preservation group, the Kalo Foundation/Ianelli Studios, and the science-based group, Chicago Council on Science and Technology (C2ST).