A 60-year-old woman has died after taking part in a cake-eating contest held in Queensland Australia. Despite the best efforts of local medical staff, paramedics were ultimately unable to resuscitate her, pronouncing her dead at the nearby Hervey Bay hospital.
The event itself took place at the Beach House Hotel and involved contenders competing to eat as many lamington cakes as they could as quickly. The sponge treats, which are flavoured with chocolate and desiccated coconut, are a traditional dish in the area and regularly feature in eating competitions held to commemorate the nation’s annual “Australia Day” celebrations.
In the aftermath of the incident, several witnesses took to social media to describe exactly what had taken place. According to one account on Facebook, as per The Independent:
“Sadly a lady died during the lamington eating competition. This lady shovelled the lamington into her mouth with no restraint … inhaled the coconut and arrested.”
“The [hotel staff were] very quick to respond with CPR, and the ambulance rocked … working on her over half an hour, it didn’t look good.”
Another witness, who was supposedly close to the woman, told Australia’s Courier Mail paper:
“I was filming and just as my friend finished I noticed she was dribbling so I rang triple-0 as she fell to the ground.”
“I was talking to [the emergency services] until they arrived. The manager and security and a friend of mine worked on her until then.”
“They put a sheet up around her and worked on her for at least another half an hour. They shocked her a few times and were still doing CPR as they took her out about 30 to 40 minutes later.”
The hotel that hosted the contest has subsequently posted a message with their commiserations, thanking emergency services for their "prompt and professional response while this tragic incident was unfolding".
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