A MOTHER today told how she found her one-year-old daughter dead only hours after she had taken her to a doctor.

A mystery bug is thought to have killed Nimra Anwar, of Inkerman Street, Blackburn, who fell ill only a day before her death.

Her parents Mohammed, 41, and Munaza, 31, became concerned when the tot started vomiting and suffering diarrhoea on Tuesday evening. They called Blackburn Royal Infirmary, where staff told them to give her some juice, according to their cousin Mohammed Akhtar, who also lives in the Shear Brow area.

Mr Akhtar said Mrs Anwar took Nimra to a local medical centre the next day, where Nimra was prescribed antibiotics and drugs to combat the effects of the illness.

They put her to bed but, when Mrs Anwar woke at 1am to check on her, the child was not moving and would not wake. Mrs Anwar's sister Fazana said Mrs Anwar immediately called her mother, who lives on nearby Shear Brow, and a relative called for an ambulance while her mother rushed to the Inkerman Street house.

Fazana Anwar said: "The ambulance came straight away. They tried to revive her for 40 minutes at the hospital, but we think she was already dead at home."

A post mortem examination couldn't find the cause of her death and laboratory tests are being completed. An inquest has been opened and adjourned until May 31.

Mr Akhtar said tradition dictated the body be brought back to the family home, but her parents were overcome at the sight of the coffin so it has been removed to the local mosque.

Nimra's father, grandmother and uncle Mr Akhtar will accompany the body to Gujerat, Pakistan, today for burial.

Mr Akhtar said Mrs Anwar, who is expecting another baby in three months, was staying at home to care for her three-year-old daughter and six-year-old son.

He said the whole family was shocked by the suddenness of Nimra's death.

He said: "It just happened in a day and a half. There was not much anyone could do.

"Nimra was a beautiful little girl, happy and smiling all the time. We will miss her dearly."