Even the most diligent of mothers can’t prevent every accident, as was the case with this toddler.
While his mother was preparing boiled water for his bath, one-year-old Daniel Chernenko from Salhany, a village in southern Ukraine accidentally fell into the bucket. The mother stepped away to get more water so that the boy’s bath would be just right. She returned soon after to find her son had drowned face-down in the bucket.
Eighty percent of Daniel’s body was extensively burnt when he was brought to the doctor. His battle for life had started then…
The doctors did everything they could to save him, and for the first ten days it looked like he might make it – his condition was starting to improve. His mother, racked with guilt, stayed by his side throughout the ordeal.
It is with a heavy heart that we report little Daniel passed away after eleven days of fighting.
Tetyana Chernenko, the mother of the Chernenko family, cannot believe what has happened. According to reports, Tetyana had to wash her son in a bucket. After she prepared the bucket of hot water, she placed it on the floor next to the table. But as Daniel went to get more cold water to mix in, he fell into the bucket.
She stated, “I saw how he fell in the boiling water. I rushed to the bucket and pulled him out. I hugged him, then wrapped him in a cotton cloth. When I unwrapped him, I saw his skin was peeling off.”
When Tetyana saw that the skin on the little boy’s body was falling off due to his severe burns, she realized that this situation was much direr than she had originally thought. In fact, the boy’s entire body had been burnt – only his fingers, toes, and forehead were spared. He cried so much that his voice eventually became hoarse from all the weeping.
The doctors at the Odessa hospital fought to save Daniel’s life after she brought him in, and even when he was close to giving up, they managed to revive him.
Daniels’ story quickly spread online, and people from every corner of the globe donated money for his medical bills. A volunteer named Katherine Nozhevnikova posted pictures of the infant on a local fundraising page, and that’s when people started making donations.
Sadly, the infant passed away despite all of the help and prayers he received.
Update on the donation drive:
“Ten liters of boiling water and just a few seconds during which the mother’s attention was diverted. The child won 11 days of life thanks to people who donated funds for his treatment. We have lost him. I am so sorry.”
The little boy’s mother never left his side until he took his final breath.
She only wishes she could have stopped him before he fell. Even though it wasn’t her fault, accidents do happen. It’s devastating that the infant didn’t survive his injuries.
