A six-week-old baby sadly died after she had 'slipped underneath her mother' while the family were asleep on the couch.
The newborn - named Lilly-Marie Tina Harris - suffered a tragic incident at the family home in Woolwich, south east London on February 1, 2021.
Both parents had fallen asleep next to their daughter and after waking up, the father noticed that something was wrong.
Advert
After making a call to paramedics at 3am, Lilly was then taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich.
Coroner Fleur Hallett of Inner South Coroner's Court explained: "Lilly’s father had been in the same room as Lilly and her mother.
"Lilly had had a feed and had fallen asleep in her mother’s arms.
Advert
"He had then fallen asleep and at some point Lilly’s mother had fallen asleep.
"He then woke with a start and could not see that Lilly’s mother was holding her anymore.
"He went over and saw that Lilly had slipped underneath her mother. He immediately woke Lilly’s mother up."
Advert
The baby had suffered 'a severe hypoxic insult to her brain', the CT scan had revealed.
Lilly was initially kept on intubation and ventilation before being transferred to Evelina Children’s Hospital in Westminster.
But unfortunately, doctors were unable to resuscitate her and she was pronounced dead the following morning.
The Coroner added: "Given the facts and the evidence we have heard I do believe, on the balance of probabilities, that it is appropriate to return a conclusion of accident.
Advert
"That is because baby Lilly-Marie fell asleep in her mother’s arms.
"Lilly-Marie’s mother also fell asleep and at some point in the following two-and-a-half hours, she slipped down underneath her mother."
Coroner Hallett added: "There were no other findings of concern from the post-mortem report that were inconsistent with the facts provided.
Advert
"Considering the evidence I've heard, my provisional view is that on the balance of probabilities, it would be safe to me to return a short form conclusion of an accidental death.
"An accident is considered to be an event where there is no human control."
The cause of the death, concluded by a paediatric and a forensic pathologist, was 'generalised and diffuse ischemia affecting the brain and spinal cord following an unsafe sleeping environment involving close sleeping with an adult'.
The family were reportedly not in attendance at Inner South Coroner's Court as Coroner Hallet gave her condolences.
If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact Cruse Bereavement Care via their national helpline on 0808 808 1677
Topics: News
Anish Vij