A family’s world is torn apart after they find their toddler dead in his crib, just weeks after Cyclone Jasper damaged their home.
Ryker Cahill was just 18 months old when he was found unconscious in his cot at his family home in Cairns, Far North Queensland, last Saturday.
His parents, Kirsty and Aidan, immediately called for help, while their neighbors performed CPR until paramedics arrived.
Tragically, the toddler could not be saved.
Their home was recently destroyed by Cyclone Jasper, which ravaged northern parts of Queensland with record dumps and flooding in December.
“I wouldn’t wish this on anyone, the pain and suffering we feel is inconsolable,” Ryker’s mother Kirsty Boon told Daily Mail Australia.
Ryker Cahill was just 18 months old when he was found unconscious in his cot at his family home in Cairns, Far North Queensland, last Saturday.
Kirsty Boon and Aidan Cahill are seen with their son Ryker
‘It’s the worst rollercoaster you’ll ever go on, but you can never get off. It’s moments of pure torture, screaming, crying, to complete numbness, blaming and what ifs, and then it starts again. It doesn’t stop.’
Mrs Boon described her son as a ‘prodigy’ because she had suffered miscarriages before his birth and had accepted that she might not be able to have children.
She had a difficult pregnancy with Ryker, which became stuck during delivery and had to be suctioned out.
That left him with a large bruise on his head and Ryker had to be checked for jaundice and spent five days in the NICU.
“Ryker was the dream kid. He was the happiest, cheekiest and most loving little man,” Mrs Boon said.
“He randomly ran up with his arms open and just gave you the biggest hug. He was truly the purest angel on earth.”
The family had only moved back into their home after Christmas, following the devastation caused by Cyclone Jasper.
Mrs Boon said although they did better than some others, they lost beds, sofas, clothes and bedding in the deluge.
Ryker is remembered as a loving and cheeky boy
The mother said Ryker had been ill for about six weeks before his death, suffering from a viral infection, Covid and RSV – a common respiratory virus that causes cold-like symptoms.
But Ms Boon said there were only a few days when Ryker was struck by the disease, and everything else seemed ‘normal’ when the toddler played outside, as he regularly did.
Ryker had been on antibiotics and had mild wheezing, which his parents monitored, and he was also on a Ventolin.
“We came home, gave him the pufferfish and watched him for about 45 minutes,” Ms. Boon said.
“He was doing well, the wheezing was gone, so we gave him his bottle, as we had done many times before, and put him in his crib.”
Ryker woke up about two hours later, but when his father went to check on him, he was “all flat and limp” and blue.
Ms Boon said they immediately called an ambulance and took Ryker to the home of their neighbor, who works as a nurse, who tried to revive him for 20 minutes.
“The ambulance finally arrived and they took over. “They all tried so hard for my little man, but unfortunately no one could bring him back,” she said.
“He had grown his angel wings and became the angel he truly was.”
A family friend, Lisa Chircop, has one GoFundMe to help fund funeral and memorial costs.
Paramedics tried desperately to revive Ryker, but tragically he could not be saved
Mrs Chircop said the family was still recovering from the cyclone when their son died.
‘The light of their lives and the sparkle in their eyes. Now struck with a heavy heart and an emptiness that can never be replaced,” she said.
“Ryker brought so much joy to everyone who met him. Even strangers he always smiled cheekily at.”
Ryker’s grandmother shared a tribute to the toddler, saying her “worst nightmare” had come true.
“I will miss our little man and I love you to the moon and back,” she wrote.
“Until we meet my little Ryker biker guy again. Fly high with the angels, babysitter loves you with all my heart.”
The fundraiser has raised more than $3,000 so far out of a $40,000 goal.
Residents of Far North Queensland are still recovering from the cyclone. A $24 million tourism recovery and resilience program was unveiled this week.
Heavy rains will hit the far north, with a monsoon trough expected to develop in the Gulf of Carpentaria and turn into a tropical low on Friday.