06/12/2026
On the afternoon of April 10, 2018, 16-year-old Kyle Plush, a student at Seven Hills School in Cincinnati, Ohio, went to the school parking lot to collect his tennis gear from his family’s 2004 Honda Odyssey. While reaching into the rear cargo area, he placed one knee on the third-row seat. Without warning, the seat collapsed backward, leaving him trapped upside down. His head became wedged in the rear storage compartment while his legs were pinned against the back hatch. His cellphone was out of reach in the front section of the van.
Using Siri’s voice command feature, Kyle managed to contact 911 at 3:14 p.m. During the call, he explained that he was trapped inside his vehicle in the Seven Hills School parking area. About 12 minutes later, officers arrived but were unable to locate him. While police were still searching nearby, Kyle placed a second emergency call and provided the vehicle’s make, model, and color. In a desperate plea, he said, "I probably don't have much time left. Tell my mom I love her if I die. Send officers immediately. I'm almost dead."
Despite the critical information Kyle provided, the 911 dispatcher failed to pass along the vehicle’s make and model to officers at the scene. After searching for approximately 11 minutes without finding him, police left the area. Nearly six hours after his first emergency call, a family member discovered Kyle inside the unlocked van. Investigators later determined that he died from asphyxia caused by severe compression of his chest.
Following the tragedy, Kyle’s father, Ron Plush, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the City of Cincinnati. The case resulted in a $6 million settlement for the family. The heartbreaking incident also sparked multiple reviews and reforms, leading to significant upgrades in Cincinnati’s 911 operations, dispatcher training, staffing practices, and law enforcement response procedures.