Brazilian authorities said they rescued a newborn baby girl Tuesday after her family buried her alive, thinking she was dead.
The Daily Mail reports a 15-year-old indigenous girl gave birth to the infant Tuesday in Canarana, Brazil while she was alone in a bathroom. During the delivery, the young mother said the baby fell onto the floor and hit her head.
The girl’s great-grandmother told authorities she examined the infant and thought she was dead. According to local ritual, the great-grandmother said she buried the infant in the ground.
For eight hours, the infant girl was in the ground before authorities, acting on a tip about an unreported infant death, dug her up alive, the report states.
“We were digging out the hole when we suddenly heard a small cry underground and realized she was alive. It was a thrilling and unforgettable moment,” Canarana military police chief João Paulo Bezerra do Nascimento told the local news.
The police chief said the baby’s survival is a miracle.
“By the time we arrived we never expected to find the child alive,” he said.
Here’s more from the report:
The infant suffered two cranial fractures which are being monitored by pediatricians at Agua Boa Regional Hospital.
When the baby apparently failed to cry after being born, the 57-year-old great grandmother, named as Kutz Amin, allegedly told police she believed the baby was dead.
She claimed she followed tribal customs and wrapped the girl in a cloth and buried her in the backyard.
She allegedly said her great-granddaughter ‘showed no signs of life’ before she entombed and completely covered her with earth.
Police said they arrested Kutz Amin on attempted murder charges. The young mother, who is not named in reports, is in the hospital suffering from complications after the birth, according to the report. There was no mention of charges against her.
- Micaiah Bilger | Lifenews.com
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