Baby died in cot after balloon cord became tangled round her neck

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

An eight-month-old baby died after the cord from a balloon which had been tied up near her cot became wrapped around her neck, an inquest has heard.

Malaysia Kaylia Lamour managed to grab the line, which was attached to her parents bed at their home in Salford.

It became tangled around her neck and stopped her from breathing, the hearing was told.

Coroner Dr Alan Walsh described the accident as “a tragedy of immense proportions” and told father Jackenson Lamour and mother Brandy Kimberley Harvey they had been “perfect parents”.

He recorded a conclusion of accidental death.

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The accident happened on 22 February 2020 as Ms Harvey looked after the child at the couple’s apartment in the city’s Irlams o'th' Heigh area while Mr Lamour was out working

She had left Malaysia in her crib at the foot of the couple’s bed while she went into the kitchen to do the washing-up, Bolton Coroner’s Court heard.

Some time later she realised the baby had stopped making noises. When she rushed into the room, she found the tot with the balloon cord wrapped around her neck.

She called paramedics who fought to resuscitate the child but she was pronounced dead a short time later.

A police investigation into the incident found that there were no suspicious circumstances or evidence of first party involvement, the Daily Mail reported.

“It's important that I say that I accept this was an enormous tragedy for Malaysia's parents and I can't stress enough that they seemed to be wonderful parents who loved Malaysia,” Dr Walsh said.

He added: “While nobody expects these terrible accidents to happen, they do happen, and it's something to learn for other parents from the tragedy of Malaysia's parents.”