Child drowned in bath while mother searched for toy, inquest hears

A nine-year-old girl drowned in the bath while her mother went downstairs to search for her favourite toy, an inquest has heard.

Mia-Ann Myerscough, from Bridgend, Wales, died after she was found by her mother, Julia Myerscough, and her partner, Vernon Ward, immersed in the bath water.

It was heard how little Mia-Ann was scooped out of the water and given CPR by Mr Ward and was rushed to hospital where resuscitation attempts were later stopped.

The inquest at Pontypridd coroners' court heard how Ms Myerscough had popped downstairs for no more than five minutes to grab Mia-Ann's favourite toy.

She feared the nine-year-old, who suffered from a condition called PCDH19-related epilepsy, would become irritable without her toy.

The condition is a rare form of the syndrome with early onset seizures, cognitive and sensory delays and behavioural problems.

Ms Myerscough added her daughter relied on the sensory toys and there had been queries if the little girl was autistic.

It was also heard how on September 13, 2021 Mia-Ann had taken some persuading to get into the bath and Ms Myerscough had concerns her daughter would become irritable without the toy.

'She was sitting towards the top of the bath in the corner next to her little squishies - her little friends,' Ms Myerscough told assistant coroner Andrew Morse. 'I made sure the tap was turned off and I went down to get Danny Dog.'

Her partner Mr Ward told the inquest that while Ms Myerscough was downstairs he heard a 'bump' or 'bang' but didn't know where it came from in the house.

He shouted up to Mia-Ann if she was okay and shouted again when he didn't get a response.

When he went upstairs he said he found Mia-Ann partially immersed in the water.

He explained he scooped Mia-Ann out of the water and immediately started CPR.

Neighbours rushed to the house after Mia-Ann's older brother alerted them to an emergency. One of the neighbours, John Howells, arrived at the house quickly.

It was heard how Mr Howells was carrying out resuscitation attempts as instructions were given by the ambulance service over the phone.

Paramedics arrived at the house within minutes and Mia-Ann was transferred to University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, where resuscitation attempts were later stopped at the paediatric intensive care unit in the early hours of the following morning.

Although the little girl suffered from the condition, she hadn't suffered a seizure for two years before her death, the inquest was told.

The mother said she was convinced her daughter hadn't had a seizure in the minutes preceding the incident and wasn't about to have one.

The inquest heard Ms Myerscough had decades of experience in dealing with close family members with epilepsy, having also cared for Mia-Ann's older sister, who is 25 and has the same condition.

Dr Alok Gaurav, consultant within children's services at Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board, told the hearing that from 2019 Mia-Ann's epilepsy 'was really well controlled' and explained that there was a pattern where the little girl wouldn't have seizures for a while but would have them in shorter bursts.

It was heard how whenever Mia-Ann had the bursts she would go bale and show key signs a seizure was coming but that on the day she died her face had been 'shining'.

Alyson Davies, paediatric epilepsy specialist nurse with Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board, had helped the Myerscough family with concerns around epilepsy since 2019.

She said Mia-Ann's epilepsy was well managed and she would usually take her medication properly, while on occasion the girl would sometimes refuse to take it.

However, she added there had been no issues reported to her regarding the girl's epilepsy for two years.

Advice for people with epilepsy was read out which stated a shower is always safer than a bath, to never shower or bathe if in a property if the person is on your own.

The mother confirmed she was aware of this but said the little girl would 'scream' when the water in the shower went on her head.

She said her daughter was a 'very private little girl' and 'loved a bath' so she would sit on the stairs on the other side of the bathroom door and 'chat away' to her daughter while she had a bath. This was agreed by Ms Davies.

Dr Stephen Leadbeatter, senior lecturer in forensic pathology at Cardiff University, told the hearing that he couldn't determine an exact medical cause of death for Mia-Ann but said it was a 'consequence of immersion in a child with PCDH19-related epilepsy'.

Assistant coroner Andrew Morse accepted the findings of Dr Leadbeatter and recorded a formal conclusion of an accident.

He told Ms Myerscough she was not being blamed for what happened to her daughter, and extended his condolences to Mia-Ann's loved ones.

Ms Myerscough said her daughter was a happy girl who loved her family. She loved Peppa Pig and trips out with her family to Margam Park.