"If You See It, Avoid It"... 'Superfood' Fruit Kills 12-Day-Old Baby

Serious injuries, including multiple skull fractures and internal bleeding
Family: "The accident happened because the city failed to prune the tree"

A 12-day-old newborn died after being struck on the head by an avocado that fell from a tree in Quilmes, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.

According to Argentine newspapers Clarín and La Nación on Oct. 27 (local time), the accident occurred on Oct. 22 at the entrance to a kindergarten in downtown Quilmes.

A 12-day-old baby died in a tragic accident in Quilmes, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, after being hit on the head by an avocado that fell from a tree about 10 meters tall. Getty Images

The baby's mother, Juliana Gomez, was preparing to go home after dropping off her five-year-old second child at kindergarten when an avocado fell from a tree about 10 meters tall and struck the baby, who was in her arms. The baby, hit by an avocado weighing more than 1 kilogram, showed no external injuries such as bleeding but began crying inconsolably.

Other parents and teachers at the scene said they tried to help Juliana and the baby and called emergency services, but that no responders arrived.

After waiting about 30 minutes, the baby's father drove them to Trinidad Hospital in Quilmes. The baby received emergency treatment and underwent surgery, but suffered serious injuries, including multiple skull fractures and internal bleeding, and was declared brain-dead. The baby died three days after the accident.

Avocado. File photo unrelated to the article. AFP-Yonhap.

Juliana said, "No one could be okay after suffering a loss like this." She said several similar accidents had occurred around the kindergarten over the past year, and that the kindergarten had requested the tree's removal in August but received no response. She also said municipal workers only began pruning the tree after the accident that killed her son, adding, "They came secretly and pruned it."

Local media, however, reported that the local government said the tree was in good condition and that the avocado fruit, not a branch, had fallen naturally. The Quilmes No. 9 Specialized Prosecutor's Office is investigating the circumstances of the death and who may be responsible for the accident, including possible negligent homicide. It also plans to conduct an autopsy on the baby and review the complete medical records.

Juliana had earlier said that the city had failed to take appropriate measures to prevent the accident and that she would take legal action against the authorities.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.