[caption id="attachment_77819" align="aligncenter" width="635"] CBS BOSTON The little brother and sister died after they were found trapped inside the hope chest on Sunday. Investigators believe it was a tragic accident.[/caption]

10-Year-Old Siblings Die in Tragic Hope Chest Accident

Franklin, Massachusetts - Residents in this city of 33,000 awoke to the sad news that siblings, both under 10-years-old, died from suffocation after being discovered in a hope chest, reports the New York Daily News.

The children were enjoying their Sunday evening when it is believed they crawled inside of a hope chest, said Franklin Police Chief Stephan H. Semerjian.

He could not say specifically what happened, if any adults were home at the time, or if the children were still alive late Sunday night.

“We’re still trying to piece together the facts,” he said. “I do know that the call came from the family, from the house.”

The call to 911 was placed about 8 p.m., Semerjian said.

It is something many children have done over the years with fond memories. Sadly, in the case of this brother and sister, they got trapped inside the chest.

The two children were in critical condition when they were discovered and were immediately taken to a nearby hospital where they both passed away. The siblings were part of a family of five and were themselves the "babies" of the family. Their older siblings are devastated by the loss.

[caption id="attachment_77823" align="aligncenter" width="613"] A hope chest, dowry chest, cedar chest, or glory box is a chest used to collect items such as clothing and household linen, by unmarried young women in anticipation of married life.
The term "hope chest" or "cedar chest" is used in the midwest or south of the United States; in the United Kingdom, the term is "bottom drawer"; while "glory box" is used by women in Australia. (widipedia)[/caption]A neighbor by the name of Mary Delfino provided the surviving children with comfort, but the coming days will be very hard for the family.

“They were in bad shape,” she said. “They were crying and really sad.” - See more at:

[caption id="attachment_77821" align="aligncenter" width="635"] CBS BOSTON Police surround a Chestnut Street home in Franklin, Mass., after two children, both under 10 years old, were found trapped inside a chest.[/caption]

Investigators are still piecing together the events that converged in this tragedy when the two children somehow managed to get themselves locked inside the hope chest.

David Traub, a spokesman for the Norfolk District Attorney’s office, told the New York Daily News, the chest could not be opened from the inside, according to CBS Boston.

“Several family members were home at the time of the incident,” Traub said in a statement. “The hope chest was in relatively close proximity to a television that was apparently on with a substantial volume at the time.”

Some answers still remain in the investigation, but thus far the deaths appear to be the result of a tragic accident of child's play gone wrong.

[caption id="attachment_77822" align="aligncenter" width="635"] WHDH The two siblings were reportedly playing a game when they became trapped in the chest Sunday[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_77820" align="aligncenter" width="635"] The children, a boy and a girl, were found in the chest inside their Franklin, Mass., home on Sunday night.[/caption]

On The Web:
2 Massachusetts children die after family finds them trapped in hope chest
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2-children-die-family-finds-trapped-hope-chest-article-1.1577751

2 children die in hope chest
http://www.boston.com/metrodesk/2014/01/12/two-franklin-children-found-home-not-breathing-rushed-hospital/EvSUQXS0ZqS0RsfqTFa7gI/story.html