Infant Chokes To Death In Sleep At Unsupervised Daycare

An infant girl choked to death while she was asleep at an unregulated daycare. The incident took place at the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel, on Thursday.

The seven-month-old baby girl is believed to have choked to death at the unsupervised daycare center that was set up for children of asylum seekers in south Tel Aviv.

Two women working at the daycare said one of them had fed the baby and made her sleep, after which, she started coughing in her sleep. She also experienced a seizure. The woman immediately contacted emergency services and the baby was transported to a medical center in Holon. However, she did not survive and was pronounced dead.

The daycare looked after 20 children in the morning and another 20 in the evening. It was also reported that the center had only two caregivers with no additional staff.

According to reports, such child care facilities are usually run by women who are migrants or asylum seekers themselves who have no qualifications or experience for the job. The daycare had reportedly failed to use about 70% of the funding it received for upgrading the facilities four years ago and at least seven children have died in such unsupervised child care centers since 2015 in the country.

The local administration expressed condolences to the family members of the infant through a written statement. However, the officials did not comment on the details of the incident as the case was still under investigation. They also mentioned that they are aware of the situation but requested authorities to not intervene “except to voluntarily assist private daycare centers it is aware of by providing guidance, volunteers and community work with the parents.”

“The city is constantly working to find additional suitable buildings for children without status in the city, but it must be remembered that this is not a simple task in these neighborhoods because of the lack of suitable structures,” the statement read.

Police said they found no signs of foul play or negligence in the child’s death. The case was still under investigation.