Heartbreaking Gqeberha Tragedy As 4-Month-Old Baby Dies at Preschool

• A four-month-old baby girl was found unresponsive during an afternoon nap at Little Learners Preschool Academy in Newton Park, Gqeberha
• The school principal performed CPR before paramedics arrived, but the infant was declared dead at the scene
• Eastern Cape police opened an inquest into the death and urged the public not to speculate while investigations continue

EASTERN CAPE — A four-month-old baby girl died at a preschool in Gqeberha on Tuesday after a nanny discovered her unresponsive during what should have been a routine afternoon nap.

The infant had been attending Little Learners Preschool Academy on Sixth Avenue in Newton Park. According to Eastern Cape police spokesperson Brigadier Nobuntu Gantana, the baby was fed at around 11:30am and placed down to sleep at approximately 12:15pm.

Just after 4:30pm, more than four hours later, a nanny went to change the baby's nappy ahead of her parents' arrival to collect her. The baby was not responsive.

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Principal and paramedics attempt to revive infant

The nanny immediately alerted the school principal, who began performing CPR on the baby. Resuscitation efforts continued until an ambulance arrived and paramedics took over at the scene.

Despite the combined efforts of the principal and emergency medical personnel, the baby was declared dead at the preschool.

Gantana confirmed that police had opened an inquest into the circumstances surrounding the death, which is standard procedure in cases of unexpected infant deaths.

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Postmortem finds no sign of foul play

A postmortem examination has since been completed. The results indicated that the baby died of natural causes.

"At this stage, no foul play is suspected," Gantana said

Police investigations into the full circumstances were still ongoing.

The preschool was approached for comment but declined to respond.

Police appealed to the public to exercise restraint as the investigation continues. "The SAPS appeals to the public to respect the privacy of the grieving family and to refrain from speculation, as we continue our fact-finding inquiries," Gantana said.

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The spokesperson also conveyed the South African Police Service's condolences to the baby's family.

3 Briefly News articles on infat deaths

• A 23-year-old woman from the Sekhukhune District in Limpopo was arrested after her alleged negligence led to her child's death.The woman allegedly went on a drinking spree and left her six-month infant in the care of a 12-year-old child.
• Paramedics in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, were called to a gruesome scene where the body of an infant, which was found murdered a Brighton Beach. A passerby discovered the body and immediately alerted the authorities, who found the child sustained severe injuries before dying.
• The KwaZulu-Natal police have arrested a woman for reportedly stabbing her infant baby to death The woman allegedly killed the newborn after she had just given birth in a shopping centre's public toilets.

Source: Briefly News