‘Healthy’ girl, 2, dies suddenly in her sleep from terrifying condition that strikes out of the blue

A TWO-year-old girl died suddenly in her sleep from a terrifying condition that strikes out of the blue.

Little Kerris Mitchell passed away as a result of sudden unexplained death in childhood (SUDC), which affects around 50 children every year in the UK.

It happens to kids aged one to 18, and doctors have no idea what causes it, how to predict it, or how to prevent it.

Kerris' mum Steph, from Bathgate, Scotland, told Edinburgh Evening News: "How can she just pass away?

"She was healthy, she was fine. It's not normal and none of it makes sense to us right now."

Steph and her partner Donny put their toddler to bed as usual on January 4.

When they went to wake her up the next morning, she was dead.

Doctors believe her passing was a case of SUDC.

Steph, 30, said: "We never knew there was such a thing as putting a kid to sleep and them just passing away.

"We just thought kids who passed away were always ill kids, not fit, healthy children."

Donny, 31, added: "We sit at night and think how we just miss her cheery wee face.

"She used to sit and wave at you. She had so much personality.

"She was just a wee angel taken too soon and in a horrible way."

Weeks later, the couple remain in the dark.

"I think the hardest part is not knowing what's happened," Steph, a bus driver, said.

SUDC is a category of death in children aged one to 18 that remains unexplained after a thorough investigation, including an autopsy.

"Most often, a seemingly healthy child goes to sleep and never wakes up," the SUDC Foundation says.

There is no official figure for how common SUDC is, but an estimated 50 youngsters are affected every year in the UK, and 450 in the US.

We never knew there was such a thing as putting a kid to sleep and them just passing away

Donny's sister Tammy Macpherson is raising money for a memorial for Kerris.

Tammy said: "It's the most devastating thing that you could ever imagine.

"It's heartbreaking when you see it on the news and you hear it's happening to other folk but you don't really understand the devastation until it happens to your own family."

Writing on GoFundMe, she added: "Donny and Steph are going through the worst time imaginable.

"They are the most kind-hearted people you'll ever meet and will do anything to help anyone that needs it, but suddenly and unexpectedly their two-year-old daughter gained her angel wings.

"She was such a mischievous and bright wee soul.

"This has totally shattered the whole family."

What is sudden unexplained death in childhood (SUDC)?

SUDC is a category of death in children aged one to 18.

It applies to deaths that remain unexplained after a thorough investigation, including an autopsy.

Most often, a seemingly healthy child goes to sleep and never wakes up.

Experts believe it happens to one in every 100,000 children.

But they don't know what causes it, meaning it is impossible to predict or prevent.

Source: SUDC Foundation