Girl, 7, Hanged Herself by Accident, Police Say

A 7-year-old Huntington Beach girl who died while playing on a backyard swing set apparently hanged herself accidentally, authorities said Wednesday.

Frances Guzman was pronounced dead at Huntington Beach Hospital on Tuesday night after her 11-year-old brother found her unconscious in the family’s backyard in the 2200 block of Florida Street, police said.

“It’s an absolute tragic situation,” said Lt. Chuck Thomas, a spokesman for the Huntington Beach Police Department. “This is a very close family, and they are very distraught. We’re not sure anybody could have done anything to prevent it.”

The girl had been playing on the swing set when her brother found her about 4:45 p.m., Thomas said. Family members, paramedics and police officers tried to revive her. A preliminary autopsy Wednesday indicated that the girl died of strangulation consistent with injury from a ligature device.

“We’re not exactly sure at this point what the device was,” Thomas said. Among the possibilities, he said, are the swing set and a clothes hanger found nearby. “We haven’t been able to rule anything out or identify exactly what it was that caused the injuries,” Thomas said, adding that no foul play is suspected.

Nationwide, about 15 children die each year from injuries related to playground equipment, mostly from strangulation, according to a Consumer Product Safety Commission report. In addition, about 200,000 children are treated in emergency rooms after being hurt on playground equipment, usually by falling. An estimated 51,000 of those injuries involve playground equipment at home, the report said.

Among the commission’s recommendations:

* Provide protective surfacing around play equipment to prevent and cushion falls.

* Space swings at least eight inches apart and 16 inches from support structures to avoid collisions.