Tragedy of babyIrah's short life

INQUEST'S OPEN VERDICT LEAVES PARENTS STILL LOOKING FOR ANSWERS

- KIT ROBERTS

THE parents of a newborn baby may never find out why their child died, but they know her short life was a tragedy.

Irah Izzy Best spent the majority of her 28 days in a basement flat susceptible to damp, cold and mould.

The social housing accommodation intended as a temporary measure - had a sump pump in the bedroom cupboard.

There sewage contamination was found in the water captured in the basin of the device, with high levels of E. Coli later detected.

Irah's parents did everything they could for their daughter, determined to give her the best possible start.

"They did nothing wrong," the coroner presiding over the inquest into her death said. Now, he added, they've been left asking 'what if?" It's a question Irah's mother echoes: "We are asking ourselves 'what could have been?"" They wanted answers. Did the conditions at the Salford flat play a part in their beloved daughter's death? Could the tragedy have been avoided? Comparisons with Awaab Ishak the little boy who died following exposure to mould at his family's social housing flat - were inevitable.

In the end, the cases differed. The coroner at Awaab's inquest concluded the conditions at his home did cause his death from a severe respiratory condition.

In Irah's case, no such link could be made. The cause of her death remains unknown- and her parent's agonising wait for answers goes on.

Irah's mother Ainsley Barker and her partner were offered the Weaste Lane property-run by Cromwood Housing Group - by Salford council before their daughter was born.

They were told they could turn it down, but Ainsley knew she had no real choice while heavily pregnant.

"I feel like if I said no to the flat, if I refused it, I would have made myself homeless and I could have had Irah taken off me," Ainsley said.

They moved into the property on November 15, 2022. Irah was born on January 1, 2023.