SAPPORO -- A 13-month-old boy died at a hospital after choking on his lunch at a licensed day care center in this city's Kita Ward on Oct. 23, its operator has announced.

The facility is run by Hiroshima-based operator Aigran Co., which runs 461 facilities nationwide, with three in Sapporo. In a news conference in Sapporo on Nov. 15, President Masafumi Hashimoto said, "I am truly sorry. We will do everything we can to prevent such an incident from happening again."

Hokkaido Prefectural Police are carefully investigating the case, considering a charge of professional negligence resulting in death.

According to the company, the boy, enrolled in the infant class at Aigran Hoikuen Takuhoku nursery, began eating his lunch around 11 a.m. on Oct. 23 with the assistance of a caregiver. After some time, he began showing signs of choking. In response, the caregiver slapped him on the back while taking him to the facility director, who immediately called the 119-emergency number. CPR and chest compressions were performed on the boy as staff waited for paramedics to arrive, but he never regained consciousness.

The lunch served to children that day included "yakiniku"-style stir-fried baby food using pork, onions, carrots and chives; miso soup with soy milk including enoki mushrooms, Chinese cabbage and carrots; boiled seasoned cabbage; soft rice; and yogurt. It is believed that the boy may have choked on the pork. Aigran explained, "The ingredients had already been cut into 2-centimeter cubes when delivered (to the facility) and then further cut up before serving." The boy had enrolled in the day care center in July, and apparently had the same meal in the past.

At the time of the incident, there were five children, including the boy, and two caregivers present in the nursery room. One caregiver was assisting the boy with his meal in a one-on-one setting. Both caregivers have more than 20 years of experience in child care. According to the Sapporo Municipal Government, the caregiver-to-child ratio for infants is one caregiver for every three infants, so the number of staffers was appropriate.

The municipal government has launched a special inspection of the day care center to investigate the facts related to the incident. It also plans to set up a committee by as early as the end of the year to determine the cause of the incident and consider measures to prevent a recurrence.

(Japanese original by Junji Takayama, Hokkaido News Department)