Hot water kills toddler

Hot water kills toddler

Grieving ... David and Leanne SeersA toddler in the United Kingdom was fatally scalded in the bath after her mother turned her back for just a couple of minutes.

The Sun reported the mother, Leanne Seers, said the tub water was cold when she went to the loo.However, she left the hot tap running with 17 month-old Katelyn in it.She heard the toddler cry out in agony and rushed back to find her standing in six inches of scalding water.

Leanne grabbed her but she suffered 30% burns on her legs and arms and died from her injuries five days later.

Leanne said, "Her arms and legs were very red and horrible to look at. Katelyn had hurt herself falling in the bath."

Two ambulances arrived within minutes and rushed mum and daughter to the hospital.

Doctors found burns on 30% of Katelyn's body and her heart was beating 200 times each minute.

Her temperature "spiked" to 39.5 degrees Celsius and continued to do so over the next five days.

Pathologist Dr Hugh White said the cause of death was septic shock due to scalding of the arms and legs.

He said he found three types of bacteria that could cause toxins on her wounds.

Because of infection, Katelyn's blood pressure dropped and her heart rate increased as it tried to compensate for it.

She died after her heart gave up due to infection.

Leanne told the inquest she begged medics not to carry on trying to revive her as her daughter had "been through so much".

She said: "She was like a rag doll. She was a baby. I thought it would be kinder to her."

Source: The SunImages: The SunPublished May 18 2011