Baby dies in tragic house fire accident
Sadbh McCarthy died from smoke inhalation after the early-morning fire at her grandparents home at 146 Rosewood Estate, Ballincollig, Co Cork.
Baby Sadbh, who was christened two weeks ago, was asleep in a moses basket in an upstairs front bedroom of the two-storey house when the alarm was raised just after 5am.
Her grandparents, Paddy and Mary McCarthy, who were out of the country on holidays, were due back in Cork last night.
Sadbh's mother, Deirdre, who is in her early 20s, and her partner, Paul Griffin, who is not the child's father, were in a rear bedroom when they noticed smoke.
They rescued the child, carried her outside and waited until two units from Ballincollig Fire Brigade and one unit from Anglesea Street Fire Station arrived.
"The fire crews were presented with a baby, who appeared to be dead, on the bonnet of a car," chief fire officer Ger Malone said.
"Two fire crew with first aid training rendered assistance but it was too late."
The child was taken to Cork University Hospital and was pronounced dead on arrival. The results of a post mortem yesterday showed she died from smoke inhalation.
Gardaí described the incident as a "tragic accident".
Sadbh did not have any burn injuries. Her moses basket was untouched. A nearby bed was damaged on one side only its headboard was intact.
The wooden-floored bedroom was badly burned in one spot, leading investigators to believe the fire may have been smouldering for some time.
Neighbours who watched the two firemen battle to save the child's life spoke of their shock yesterday.
"I saw the blue lights flashing outside. That was the first I saw of it," neighbour Brendan Hegarty said.
"Then I saw the firemen working on the baby on the bonnet of the car. It was desperate." Sadbh's father was contacted yesterday.
The firemen who tried to save her were too traumatised to talk and received counselling last night.
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