THE dad of a five-year-old girl who became the ninth child to die after contracting Strep A has paid a heartfelt tribute to his daughter.
Stella-Lily McCorkindale fell severely ill last week and was treated in hospital but sadly passed away yesterday, the BBC reports.
The ninth child to die from Strep A has been named as Stella-Lily McCorkindaleFacebook/Robert Mccorkindale
Facebook/Robert MccorkindaleHer heartbroken father has now paid tribute to his little girl[/caption]
She attended Black Mountain Primary School in Belfast.
Her heartbroken father, Robert, took to social media to thank people for their thoughts and prayers after the youngster died in hospital.
Mr McCorkindale wrote: “I hope use all find the time to read this I don’t have the strength to do a video.
“First of all I want to thank everyone of you from the bottom of my heart. If prays, thoughts, feelings and love could of worked she would of walked out of that hospital holding her daddy’s hand.
“So from me and Stella-Lily thanks all of you for all you kind prayers and thoughts and feelings we felt everyone, words can’t express our gratitude.
“When my daughter was born there was no other option than to bring her home and raise her amongst the greatest people in the world on the Shankill Road.
“We loved every minute together walking this road on our scooter rides or bikes rides, to shopping in Iceland to living beside the neighbours that ever walked this earth.
“From every business we were in to any bad bad booze place we passed everytime I looked up if someone didn’t tell me how cute we were then use had big smiles for us.
“You have carried my family this far I ask one thing be with until next Wednesday for her funeral we still need you.”
He added: “To everyone from Belfast to Northern Ireland to her family in Canada thank you all for every thought.
“Stella-Lily felt them all.”
The West Belfast primary school Stella-Lilly attended said her death was a “tragic loss to our school community.”
“Sadly, the governors, staff and students of Black Mountain Primary School have been informed of the untimely passing of one of our P2 pupils, Stella-Lily McCorkindale,” read a post.
“This is a tragic loss to the Black Mountain Primary School family and our school community, and the thoughts of the entire school are with the Stella-Lily’s family and friends at this sad and difficult time.
“Stella-Lily was a very bright and talented little girl and very popular with both staff and children and will be greatly missed by everyone at school.
“To assist in supporting our pupils and staff at this sad time, additional trained staff from the Education Authority Critical Incident Response Team have been engaged and will be providing support to the school.”
INTO Northern Secretary Gerry Murphy sent his condolences to Stella-Lily’s parents and family, and to the pupils, staff and wider school community of Black Mountain.
Mr Murphy said: “It is vitally important that all schools are immediately provided with the pertinent advice from the PHA and the employing authorities in identifying the symptoms and the appropriate actions that need to be taken to protect pupils, staff and school communities to prevent further tragedies related to this current outbreak.”
A GoFundMe page has been created to help the family.
It is understood that she became unwell last week and was taken to the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children where she was treated in intensive care for three days before sadly passing away on Monday night.
Parents of the youngest pupils at the school received a letter from the Public Health Agency on Friday to tell them a pupil had been diagnosed with a severe form of Strep A.
Her death takes the number of children known to have died from the illness – which usually only causes a mild sore throat and temperature but can be life-threatening – to nine.
These include Muhammed Ibrahim Ali, four, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, and seven-year-old Hanna Roap, from Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan.
Lockdowns during the pandemic, when kids were trapped indoors, are being blamed for the outbreak.
As cases of scarlet fever and Strep A sweep across the UK, several primary schools have made the decision to close.
St Vincent’s Voluntary Catholic Academy in Hull shut for a “deep clean” on Friday after a small number of children came down with a bug.
Parents at the school gates on Monday were in agreement that it was the right precaution to take.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said the last time there was an intensive period of Strep A infection was in 2017-18 when four deaths were recorded in England in the equivalent time frame.
In response to the outbreak, Downing Street yesterday said it can “fully understand” that parents are concerned by rising Strep A cases, but stressed the NHS is “well prepared” for such situations.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “We are seeing a higher number of cases of Group A strep this year compared to usual.
“The bacteria we know causes a mild infection which is easily treated with antibiotics and in rare circumstances it can get into the bloodstream and cause serious illness.
“It is still uncommon but it’s important parents are on the lookout for symptoms.
“But the NHS is well prepared to deal with situations like this, working with the UK Health Security Agency.”
He said any parents who are concerned should contact the NHS.
The Sun’s Dr Jeff Foster said Strep A is one of the most common bugs doctors see in kids every year, but that it is currently surging.
He said: “It is commonly found in children under ten and is spread by droplets and close contact — through spit, sneezing, coughing and touching infected surfaces. It’s the same way you would get a common cold.
“You can get mild cases where children have a temperature and a sore throat. If it becomes scarlet fever they would get a rash, which looks like sandpaper, around four or five days after the temperature starts, and red flushing cheeks.
“This year’s is not a new variant. It’s the post-Covid effect as kids were not exposed to bugs for two years.”
Data from the UKHSA shows that there were 851 cases of scarlet fever in the week ending November 20.
This is compared to 186 cases recorded in previous years.
Scarlet fever is caused by bacteria called group A streptococci. These bacteria also cause other respiratory and skin infections such as Strep throat and impetigo.
Dr Colin Brown, deputy director of the UKHSA, added: “It is important parents are on the lookout for symptoms — and see a doctor as quickly as possible so we can stop the infection becoming serious.”
Four-year-old Muhammad Ibrahim Ali died within days of being diagnosed
WNSHannah Roap, seven, is another of the victims[/caption]
HIGH ALERT: Symptoms of invasive Strep A
Group A Streptococcus (GAS) – is also known as Streptococcus pyogenes – and is a bacteria that can cause mild illnesses like sore throats and skin infections, including tonsillitis cellulitis, impetigo and scarlet fever.
In rare cases, the bacteria can trigger the life-threatening illness, invasive group A Strep disease.
Guidance from the NHS states that there are four key signs of invasive disease:
fever (a high temperature above 38°C (100.4°F)
severe muscle aches
localised muscle tenderness
redness at the site of a wound
Invasive disease happens when the bacteria break through the body’s immune defences.
It can happen if you’re already ill or have a weakened immune system.
Two of the most severe examples of invasive disease are necrotising fasciitis and toxic shock syndrome.
You’re at increased risk of Group Strep A invasive disease if you:
are in close contact with someone who has the disease
are over the age of 65
are diabetic, have heart disease or cancer
have recently had chickenpox
have HIV
use some steroids or intravenous drugs, according to the NHS.
Group Strep A bacteria can also cause scarlet fever, which can be serious if it’s not treated with antibiotics.