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Daily Record
Daily Record
World
Angharad Thomas & Steven Rae

Mum left heartbroken after baby dies in sleep having just learned to smile

A mum has been left heartbroken after her "happy and healthy" baby died in his sleep aged just three months.

Chloe Evans' son Mackenzie-Brian Evans tragically died in December 2021. The 26-year-old says she put her baby to bed before finding him not breathing the next morning.

Chloe said Mackenzie-Brian had just learned to smile before he passed - something she says no other mother should have to deal with.

She told Wales Online : “I wouldn't want another parent to go through what I've gone through.”

“I phoned the ambulance and I had to do CPR until they arrived. He was really healthy and he went to bed and I just couldn't get over it the next day."

She said in a tribute: “Mackenzie-Brian was a content, beautiful boy who was in our lives for a short time. He will remain in our hearts forever.”

His seven-year-old brother Harley added: “Goodnight, gorgeous brother.”

Mackenzie-Brian Evans (Supplied)

Chloe is speaking out to try help other avoid going through the same experience she went through after his death.

The mum says she was forced to wait years for answers and mental health support, as well as the two years she spent waiting for a counsellor.

While she felt let down in the support she has received following the tot's death, Chloe praised the emergency services for how they helped her during the tragedy.

She said: “The support from the paramedics was brilliant because they did everything they could, but they couldn't save him because he'd been gone longer than we thought.

"One of the police officers that attended the scene stayed in my oldest son's bedroom while the paramedics worked on my youngest.”

The 26-year-old had to wait a month to hold his funeral, finally laying him to rest on January 10, 2022. But she was still left to wait for answers as to what had happened to him.

Over a year later, an inquest took place on June 6, 2023. It revealed the post mortem results and explained the youngster's death.

The cause of death was sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) - also known as 'cot death' - the unexpected and unexplained death of an apparently healthy baby.

Chloe said she and her family have good and bad days since the death, but accessing support over the last two years has been a struggle.

She added: “I've had to see the GP quite a few times. I've had to be referred to the mental health team a few times. But the support I've had hasn't been the best, I've had to wait nearly two years to see a counsellor face-to-face.”

Mackenzie-Brian Evans gets a cuddle from his big brother Harley. (Supplied)

She was also in touch with a bereavement charity but said “the phone calls stopped”. She added: “It would be nice to have some sort of counselling so I can like talk about how I feel," and said her grandparents had been a huge support to her.

A spokesperson for Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board said Chloe should contact them to discuss her concerns, adding: “We extend our sincere and heartfelt condolences to Miss Evans and her family during this extremely difficult time."

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