"My Baby's Sink Adventure: The Moment She Turned on the Scalding Tap and Filled Me with Fear"

HEAVILY pregnant Shannan Winning, 33, raced towards her daughter, Elena, one, as she screamed in agony.

The single mum to Elena, Aliyah, then aged 12, and Blaze, then aged five, had only popped out briefly with her grandfather to collect a baby swing she’d bought off Marketplace. She’d left her children with her nan, who asked not to be named.

Mum and daughter Shannan and ElenaCredit: True Life Stories Elena was in hospital for months – her mum didn’t leave her sideCredit: True Life Stories

But while Shannan was out her nan had called her and said there’d been an accident.

And it was every parent’s worst nightmare – Elena had clambered into the sink and turned on the boiling water tap.

The youngster’s feet had been scalded so badly, the skin began to peel away.

When Shannan arrived home her nan was running cold water over Elena’s legs while talking on the phone to paramedics. “Elena was shaking uncontrollably and howling,” she says. “I looked down and saw her leg was bright red. Her skin had melted all over the floor.

“I was violently shaking. My grandfather sped us to the hospital as Elena was bawling on my lap. I didn’t dare look down at her legs.

“I immediately thought my baby was going to die. I went into so much shock, I was shaking.”

At Joondalup Hospital in , Australia, doctors told the family Elena’s condition was incredibly serious. Nurses and doctors put her under a cold shower.

Shannan says: “Elena’s legs were skinless by the end of the shower. When I next saw her, she was silent and floppy. They’d given my baby .”

Fentanyl, while a dangerous street drug, is also used in medical settings as it is a powerful pain reliever. It’s often used before or after surgery.

Elena was rushed to a specialist burn unit at Perth Children’s Hospital. Doctors warned Shannan Elena’s condition was critical.

Shannan says: “Elena’s legs had turned into ice blocks. Her blood had stopped flowing and her heart rate was twice as high.

“They told me that she’d gone into shock. I was screaming ‘Will my baby die?’ but no-one would answer me. They were silent.”

Shannan learned Elena had third-degree burns to her legs, feet, and hands. They had to rush her into emergency surgery and warned Shannan she could lose her legs.

I was screaming ‘Will my baby die?’ but no-one would answer me.

Shannan

Elena had an escharotomy, a procedure which would allow greater circulation to her legs.

Shannan says: “After nearly five hours, the escharotomy saved her legs. But Elena’s heart rate was still twice as high and surgeons warned things were still very bad.

“I stayed by Elena’s side, praying on my knees for her to survive. She was asleep. She was lifeless. But finally, on day 11, she woke up.”

Her mum knew she’s be okay when she “smiled at a nurse”

The brave youngster was in hospital for monthsCredit: True Life Stories Elena’s skin was torn from her bodyCredit: True Life Stories

Eventually Shannan learnt the full details of what happened on that day in January 2022. She says: “After my grandfather and I left, nan left Elena in the living room to go outside and tell the Aliyah and Blaze that I’d had gone out.

“In that brief moment, Elena walked to the bathroom. She pulled herself onto the toilet, then climbed into the sink.

“We had a hot water system that ran off the sun which made the water burning hot.

“Elena had turned it on and because her backside blocked the drain, she was sitting in 90 degree celsius hot water for minutes.

Although Elena was only one, I wasn’t shocked that she’d climbed to the sink.

Shannan

“Aliyah heard her screams, jumped out of the pool and ran to her. As nan was back doing the dishes, she hadn’t heard.

“Although Elena was only one, I wasn’t shocked that she’d climbed to the sink. At just nine months old, she’d walked. By the age of one, she was climbing playgrounds.

“I knew it wasn’t my nan’s fault, and that accidents happen. I had no anger towards her.”

Although doctors managed to save Elena’s feet, her toes needed rebuilding. She had two leg reconstructions and her knees fused so that they could bend.

She also went on to have nine skin grafts taken from her left thigh, which covered her right leg.

Day by day, Elena got stronger. In March 2022, after nearly two months in hospital, Elena was discharged.

Shannan says: “At this point, I was eight months pregnant. I took Elena back to the hospital every day and I changed her dressings there. The next month, we were at the hospital for our usual appointment when I felt a sharp pain in my stomach.

“I was rushed to the maternity unit and two days later, I gave birth to a beautiful girl, Saige, now two. I was so in love. But the next morning, I was straight back home to bathe Elena. She was my priority.”

The next year, Elena was walking, running and back to her energetic self. But she still underwent multiple surgeries over the coming years, to help with her growth.

My baby girl may be scarred for life, but those scars show what she has overcome. She’s a survivor and I’m so proud of her.

Shannan

Shannan, now a student nurse, says: “Elena suffered with some trauma for a while, her loving personality flipped and she hated me getting close to her.

“I cried every day at how that day had changed her. But Elena’s now three, and has returned to her happy old self.

“She’s doing intensive and has nearly fully recovered.

“My baby girl may be scarred for life, but those scars show what she has overcome. She’s a survivor and I’m so proud of her.”

Mum Shannan and Elena in hospitalCredit: True Life Stories Elena has suffered long-term damage to her legs, but her mum says she’s powering onCredit: True Life Stories Elena with her little sister nowCredit: True Life Stories