American mother to blame for baby’s death on Spanish baggage carousel
The Spanish government says an American mother, Nathania Terry, was to blame for the death of her five-month old baby girl at Alicante Airport last year, after she placed her on a baggage carousel while she apparently attempted to retrieve the child’s pram.
The government statement was made this week after a Spanish politician, Ricardo Sixto, asked for more information about the child’s death.
Five-month-old Vashti Terry was killed at Alicante Airport last September right after her parents had arrived in Spain after a two-hour flight from London.
At the baggage carousel while waiting for their luggage, 32-year-old American, Nathania Terry, placed her daughter Vashti on the immobile belt which soon began to move without either parent noticing.
Vashti was swept away with it, only to become lodged in a small area further down the carousel where two luggage belts meet and where her skull was then fractured. Alicante Airport medical staff arrived immediately, but the baby died at the scene.
The Spanish government, after having the incident thoroughly investigated, has said the child died due to the neglect of her mother and not due to any fault with Alicante Airport’s equipment, which is fully compliant with all EU safety regulations.
After all, when you willingly place a five-month-old baby on a luggage carousel and look away, you cannot honestly expect much else of a verdict — no matter how tragic and desperately sad the outcome.
Hopefully other parents traveling anywhere in the world, and not just Spain, will take note.