A treat after swimming lessons has turned to tragedy for a NSW family, after their five-year-old choked on a common snack.

Imogen Lennon, from Canowindra, had just finished swimming lessons, and was being driven home by her mum Sam, when tragedy struck.

“On the drive home, Imogen was happily eating a deli frankfurt (a favourite after swimming) and chatting away to her mum from the back seat, when she suddenly started choking,” family friend Tamara Harrison explained on GoFundMe.

“Despite Sam’s heroic efforts, ringing an ambulance, the help of a passerby and eventually driving Imogen to the hospital herself (the ambulance was too far away to make it in time) beautiful Imogen passed away later at the hospital.”

Imogen has been described as bright, determined, loving and sassy with her passing leaving her family ‘shattered’.

“To make sense of such a tragic loss in such a way is inconceivable, there are no words that could accurately describe how shattered Imogen’s family are. It is impossible to imagine life without Imogen.”

Tamara started the GoFundMe fundraiser to help the family cover the costs of the funeral.

“Anyone that knows this couple knows that they are true Aussie battlers, always helping others. They would give the shirts off their backs, without a second thought should someone be in need,” Tamara wrote.

“The burden of trying to find the money to pay for Imogen’s final resting place and a fitting celebration of her short life is a burden that I would like to remove for this family, while they deal with such an unthinkable tragedy.”

Donations can be made at GoFundMe.

Kidsafe Victoria explains on its website that sausages are a common choking hazard, and the simplest ways to reduce the risk is to cut sausages, frankfurts and other meats with coarse outer skins into small pieces, and remove the skin.

@tinyheartseducation #hotdogchoking #chokingrisk #startingsolids #howtopreparehotdogs ♬ original sound – Tiny Hearts

Tiny Hearts Education recently shared a video demonstrating how to minimise the risk of choking on frankfurts. “This is the food that causes more choking deaths than any other food,” states the video.