Saudi baby dies on Australia flight

Dubai: A Saudi baby girl died after she fell sick while she was on a flight with her parents from Malaysia to Australia, Dubai-based television Al Arabiya reported online on Tuesday.

The two-month baby, named Farah, started to cry uncontrollably after the AirAsia flight left Kuala Lumpur on Monday for Perth.

Emergency medical assistance failed to save the child who cried for more than two hours, according to the report.

She died in the arms of a flight passenger, who was a former nurse and tried to assist her.

The ex-nurse, identified Nadia Parenzee, said she had offered help to the baby’s distressed young parents.

“They gave me the baby and I just went ‘oh my goodness, this baby is grey’. The baby wasn’t breathing properly,” Nadia told The West Australian newspaper.

“The parents were absolutely besides themselves. The mother was crying so much, saying ‘this is my baby’,” she said.

“I thought this is going to be a medical emergency. I put the baby on the counter where they prepare the food. I felt her pulse and breath and thought ‘oh my god, this baby is dying’.”

Nadia added that she alerted a flight attendant that the baby needed medical attention and a call went out for any doctors on board.

Four doctors then spent the next two and a half hours, until the plane landed in Perth, trying to save the infant.

“They took it in turns. They were exhausted,” she said, adding that Farah passed away on the aircraft.

The West Australian quoted local police as saying that the baby’s death was not being treated as suspicious and that a report was being prepared for the coroner.