Baby Girl Survives Days Trapped Under Dead Father

A baby girl was found dehydrated but still alive after having been trapped for days under the body of her father, a coroner in Shreveport, La., says. Police found 10-month-old Betty Jean Fields on a bed wedged between a wall and her father's body on Friday night after her 5-year-old brother went to a neighbor's house and told them he thought his father was dead. "It looked like he was sitting on the side of the bed on his computer, fell backward, and died" from sudden cardiac arrest, the coroner tells the Shreveport Times. "The fact that he fell on her and made no attempt to get up tells me he died instantly when he fell on top of her."

The home had no air conditioning, and the baby was found with blistering skin, but she was able to "breath, expand [her] chest up and down," the coroner says. "We're very blessed that the baby didn't succumb." Judging from the advanced state of decomposition, the coroner believes the girl's 43-year-old father, who had a history of heart problems, had been dead for around three days. The girl is expected to make a full recovery; her mother, who was in jail on misdemeanor charges, was released early to care for her and her brother, reports Reuters. (More Shreveport, La. stories.)