‘He should be in my arms - but i Hope He can save lives’
Dad’s plea after baby death tragedy
A DAD hopes the tragic story of his son, who went to sleep and never woke up, can save lives.
BABY Caleb went to bed with his mum and sixyear-old sister and never woke up, an inquest has heard.
Paula Sillitoe usually put five-month-old Caleb to sleep in his cot, but on that night she had decided she wanted a few more “cwtches” with her children.
A report, read out at the inquest at Swansea Civic Centre, described how Ms Sillitoe fell asleep, with Caleb and daughter Ebony still in the bed.
When she woke at around 5am, she went to Caleb’s cot to check on him.
She panicked when she couldn’t find him and went downstairs, before suddenly remembering that she had gone to sleep with him the night before.
It was then that she discovered Caleb, who had slipped down to the bottom of the bed, “not breathing” and “not moving”.
A postmortem examination was unable to determine a cause of death.
Senior coroner Colin Phillips concluded that Caleb died due to sudden unexplained death in infancy.
Speaking after the inquest, Caleb’s father Paul Price, who is separated from Ms Sillitoe, warned of the risk of cot death in babies.
“This isn’t an old wives’ tale and these things do exist,” he said.
“Cot death is still there. This is a story that needs to be told. I may have lost Caleb but I hope this story can save other lives.”
The inquest heard how Caleb, born three-and-ahalf weeks early on December 20, 2017, was a well looked after baby. He enjoyed a happy home life and a “loving caring family”.
The day before he died, on Monday, May 21, 2018, Paula Sillitoe, 33, had just returned from a weekend away at Trecco Bay in Porthcawl with her two children. She had been celebrating her birthday, which had been the previous week.
They arrived back at their home in Fairyland, Neath, at lunchtime, and she spent the afternoon and early evening catching up with friends.
Daughter Ebony played with friends on the trampoline. Caleb had been happily bouncing in his bouncer in the doorway.
Ms Sillitoe had consumed a few cans of lager that evening, but was not drunk and had cooked her older child steak for tea before bed.
She dressed Caleb in his Winnie the Pooh suit and settled into bed for some cuddles. It was something hundreds, if not thousands, of parents across the country did, said pathologist Dr Andrew Bamber, who gave evidence at the inquest.
When Ms Sillitoe woke and discovered Caleb in the early hours the next day, she immediately phoned her friend Rhian Jenkins, who lives only two doors down from the family.
When Ms Jenkins saw Caleb, she said he looked “lifeless” and she “knew he was dead”.
Caleb was taken by paramedics to Morriston Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Dr Bamber, who carried
out the post-mortem, said he was unable to find any evidence of suffocation. Factors such as prematurity could increase the risks of sudden death, he said.
He told the inquest the cause of death was “unascertained”.
Giving his narrative conclusion, coroner Colin Phillips described a “very painful set of circumstances” and said he was sure Caleb would be very sadly missed.
Caleb’s dad Mr Price added said: “Paula is one of the best mums I have seen in my life. We have all had children in bed with us because we love them.
“I called him ‘tiger,’ his mum called him ‘bubba.’ Talking about it is the only way I can deal with it – something good has to come out of my son’s death.
“I tell him every night he is helping so many other babies. Parents should know whatever they are doing, there are risks.
“My little boy should be in my arms right now.”