New Mom ‘Cut In Half’ Due To Hospital Lift’s Mechanical Failure [Updated]


A 26-year-old woman in Seville who had just given birth died after the hospital’s elevator malfunctioned and trapped her head. Local paper El Correo reports that the tragedy took place at the Virgen de Valme University Hospital in the province’s Dos Hermanas neighborhood.

Rocío Cortés Núñez was being transported to the hospital’s maternity ward when the devastating accident happened. She just woke up following a Cesarean procedure and was supposed to recover and spend time with her newborn in the ward.

As opposed to the initial reports, the newborn wasn’t with her mother when the lift when awry. That time, the infant was on her way to the Children’s Hospital of Virgen del Rocio to receive treatment for a heart condition. An anonymous hospital worker told the Mirror that the infant would not have survived if she was in the lift too.

“If they hadn’t taken the baby to another hospital she could have suffered the same fate because they always put newborns on their mother’s breast, even when it’s been a Cesarean.”

As per the report, the hospital caretaker was in the process of transferring Nuñez’s stretcher to another elevator after the first opened and closed twice without actually moving. The caretaker first stepped out of the compartment but just as he was about to completely pull out the stretcher, the elevator started moving upwards leaving the patient’s half of body still inside.

Nuñez’s head got trapped between the lift’s frame and roof. Authorities believe that the elevator’s closing system had a mechanical failure leading to the patient being divided in two.

[Image by Shutterstock]

While an emergency response team immediately arrived after being alerted, they weren’t able to save the new mother. Reports further claim that the firefighters only managed to get her body out after two hours.

The victim’s brother-in-law David Gaspar said that the unbelievable tragedy left the patient’s husband devastated. That day, they were looking forward to celebrating the birth of the baby. They believe that the accident “cannot go unpunished” and hope that clarification will soon emerge. The body was taken to the Forensic Anatomical Institute of Seville for an autopsy.

According to IB Times, Health Minister of Andalusia Region Marina Alvarez said that the hospital’s elevator was last checked on August 12 and that it “had passed all inspections and complied with regulations.”

She described the incident as a “quick and unusual” one. The hospital is supervised by the Andalusian Health Servie and provides care to approximately 300,000 patients. Alvarez personally went to the hospital to gather details and provide support to Nuñez’s family.

The victim left behind two other daughters aged three and four. She loved sharing photos of her children’s adventures on her social media page.

[Featured Image by Esebene/iStock]

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