[ad_1]
An infant thought to have died from a suspected gas leak in a Hamilton home died of septicemia, and gas was not a factor.
The baby, who Things has agreed not to name, he was almost four months old when he died on February 17, 2020.
When the death occurred, emergency services said they had been called in for the smell of gas, which had been caused by a leak in the gas panel heater.
However, in a recently published forensic report, the baby was confirmed to have died of septicemia, also known as blood poisoning, with no evidence that a gas leak caused or contributed to his death.
READ MORE:
* Over $ 35,000 raised for the family of a boy who died in a ‘tragic accident’ on the Upper Hutt playground
* Death of 3-month-old baby in Manukau’s apartment is not suspicious
* Death of a 2 month old baby in Northland referred to the coroner
His absence of symptoms had given his family little warning that he was seriously ill. They had desperately tried to save him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation once they found him not breathing.
The baby was a twin and he and his sister were cared for by whānau, according to the report by coroner Michael Robb.
When emergency services personnel came to the home the day the baby died, they detected a smell of gas.
This prompted WorkSafe Energy Safety to conduct an extensive investigation, and they established that while there may be an odor, natural gas was not toxic as such, nor would it lead to suffocation to the level possible in the home at the time.
The twins had suffered some health problems due to preterm delivery and were admitted to Waikato Hospital to investigate concerns about possible seizure activity.
They both had some breathing problems, but the baby who died had more pronounced breathing problems and sometimes a high fever compared to his sister.
The days before his death had been more difficult to settle down and he was not feeding as well as his sister.
Healthline was called on February 14 and advised to monitor his temperature and, if it rose above 37 degrees, take him to the hospital.
His temperature was checked every two hours and was kept at about 37 degrees.
Dominico Zapata / Things
The twins had suffered some health problems due to preterm delivery and were admitted to Waikato Hospital to investigate concerns about possible seizure activity.
He slept in a bassinet in the living room while his sister slept in another room to make sure the other’s sleep was not disturbed.
They placed him on his back, but supported him with a triangular pillow to try to help him with his breathing difficulties.
On the night of February 16, the whānau had concerns that the baby was not feeding well and was still difficult to settle.
Although he was physically hotter than usual, his temperature remained normal.
He was fed around midnight and sometime between 1 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. on February 17, a family member went to the bathroom.
They could hear him making little grunts, and they stood at the entrance to the living room without turning on the light just to listen as he continued to sleep.
There was nothing to indicate any cause for concern or that he was in any physical discomfort or very ill, the coroner noted.
The next morning, one of the children came into the room and sat on the bed next to where the baby’s bassinet was placed.
A short time later, at around 7:40 a.m., one of the adults entered the room and noticed that he was strangely face down in his bassinet.
There was no indication that the child had had contact with the baby and when he was picked up he was unresponsive and cold to the touch.
Emergency services were called in immediately and the Whānau were advised how to do CPR and efforts were made and continued until emergency personnel attended and took over.
Despite all efforts, the baby could not be saved.
In response to Things When inquiring about the incident, a police spokeswoman said emergency services personnel believed they could smell gas in the address and the occupants of the home suggested that a leaking gas panel heater could be the cause.
Six people were taken to the hospital as a precaution at the time.
The baby’s death was reported to the on-call coroner and initial investigations did not identify a direct cause of death, but additional testing returned a positive test for Staphylococcus hominis, Robb said in his report.
This led to the cause of death being determined as septicemia, with the time between onset and death within hours.
The investigation revealed that the baby developed and died of septicemia very quickly and it was highly unlikely that there would be any obvious signs that he was not feeling well before falling asleep before midnight, Robb said.
