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Auckland rescue helicopters - Source: ONE News
A young boy became seriously ill after swallowing a $2 coin while on his way to the dairy.
And with the coin now safely removed from his throat the "chirpy" 10-year-old still wants to invest it in a cold treat.
His parents, however, plan to save the coin for his 21st birthday as a reminder of his, in hindsight, "quite funny" ordeal.
The boy was walking to a dairy in Tauranga with his two siblings to buy an icecream about 4pm on Sunday.
He can't remember why, but he put the dirty $2 coin his parents had given him into his mouth.
It then became lodged in his throat, causing him to gag and throw up for close to eight hours.
He was initially taken to Tauranga Hospital, but because of concerns about the coin moving around, he was transferred to Waikato Hospital in the Westpac Rescue Helicopter.
The boy's father, Grayson Ottaway, a reporter for Newstalk ZB in Tauranga, said his son - who he did not want named - had an uncomfortable night in hospital.
"He unfortunately was rather unwell right the way through till midnight because, of course, the coin kept moving.
"He could breathe okay, there were times when he couldn't, but he couldn't swallow and he kept, of course, gagging."
Hospital staff were able to remove the coin from the boy's oesophagus, and yesterday, apart from having "a little bit of a sore throat," he was back to his normal self.
Ottaway said his son couldn't remember the ordeal as he had been in shock, and it remained a mystery as to how the coin became stuck.
"It's quite funny in some respects because it's just one of those unexpected things," he said.
"You just don't expect your kid's going to end up swallowing something that causes so many dramas."
Hospital staff told Ottaway that Sundays were commonly "a busy day for swallowings".
"They have actually had quite a number of batteries, marbles up noses, little tiny army men and all sorts.
"Kids get bored and go, 'I wonder if this will go up."'
Clinical nurse manager Diana Knight said if a child swallows something that becomes lodged in the throat, it was important for parents or caregivers to take them to a doctor to dislodge it.
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