Toddler in death fall af ter mum looks away to clean up
A TODDLER has died after falling 25ft from the balcony of an apartment in Portugal while his mother was cleaning.
Spencer Devlin, who was 18 months old, suffered serious head injuries in the fall from the second-floor flat.
His mother Holly Bishop, 28, had opened the window slightly to air the apartment – but the little boy climbed outside when her back was turned.
Miss Bishop, originally from Perth, Australia, and her Scots partner Robert Devlin, 32, have been left ‘utterly devastated’, their family said.
The couple have lived in Lagos in the Algarve – where Mr Devlin runs a smoothie business – for three years, and it is where Spencer was born.
Miss Bishop had been cleaning their apartment at 9.30am last Saturday when he fell.
Her sister, Jess Marach, said Spencer had been following his mother around ‘as he always did’ before wandering off silently. ‘She thought he was getting up to mischief as kids do when they go quiet,’ Miss Marach said, adding that her sister panicked upon seeing the balcony window fully open.
‘[Holly] ran over to look [and] saw little Spencer on the ground outside with people surrounding him and she ran straight down the stairs to him.
‘His breathing was very laboured, but he was breathing and he was immediately rushed to the local hospital,’ she told News.com.au.
The toddler was later transferred to another hospital in Faro 55 miles away, but his injuries were too severe for him to be saved.
Miss Marach said: ‘At hospital they told Holly and Rob that Spencer’s brain function was already gone but they both still held on to hope that he would pull through.
‘Unfortunately, the extent of his injuries were just too much for his small body and he passed away peacefully. It was a freak accident that could happen to any of us in a split second.’
Miss Marach said she believed building safety regulations were far more relaxed in Portugal.
‘Their windows open freely and they have no restrictions,’ she said, adding that Spencer was ‘the happiest of toddlers’ and ‘such a joy to be around’.
‘He was always happy and smiling and barely ever cried. As expected our whole family is utterly devastated at the loss of Spencer and life will never be the same,’ she said.
Police are investigating the tragedy.
Mr Devlin is director of Just Smoothies Portugal, which distributes fresh fruit drinks to bars, restaurants and hotels across the Algarve.
Speaking from Portugal last night, devastated Mr Devlin said: ‘We are very, very upset about it and just taking things day by day. I can’t really say anything more at this stage.’
Mr Devlin keeps in close contact with family and friends in Coatbridge, Lanarkshire.
Niece Rachel Devlin, from the town, said the family were too upset to discuss the tragedy.
On Mr Devlin’s Facebook page, Jim Hillen, from Coatbridge, posted: ‘Thinking of all of you, God bless.’
Friends have started a fundraiser on the GoFundMe website to help the couple pay the funeral costs and medical bills.
The appeal had raised more than £2,000 last night.
Friend Tammy Dower wrote: ‘Yesterday was the worst day of Rob and Holly’s lives.
‘Their little baby boy Spencer had a tragic accident and was taken to hospital in Portugal where they did all they could for him. But, unfortunately, he just couldn’t fight any longer.
‘They are beyond devastated ... It honestly breaks my heart in a million pieces for Holly and her family.’
‘Utterly devastated’