Mum of miracle baby Carter Cookson says they will ‘never recover’ from his tragic death
Baby Carter had suffered three heart attacks since his premature birth on Boxing Day and desperately needed an organ donation
THE mum of ‘miracle’ baby boy Carter Cookson has said the family will never recover from his death after the tot passed away last night aged just 24 days.
Baby Carter had suffered three heart attacks since his premature birth on Boxing Day and was desperately in need of a new heart.
His distraught parents Sarah and Chris had made multiple pleas for an organ donor as their baby fought for life while hooked to an artificial heart machine at Freeman Hospital in Newcastle.
But revealing his death last night, grief-stricken Sarah said Carter had finally "gained his wings".
The 44-year-old dance teacher took to Facebook to post an emotional tribute to her son, saying: "RIP Carter John Cookson.
"Today he could not fight anymore... at 5.44pm our brave baby boy Carter John Cookson gained his angel wings and flew into his big brother's arms.
"We are heart broken....our two boys are in heaven without their Mammy and Daddy we feel so empty and our hearts will never recover."
It is the second tragedy to hit the couple after their first son Charlie died aged two in 2013.
The couple, from South Shields, faced a race against time to save Carter, and had had hoped he could remain on the Ecmo machine for the next six weeks.
However, he lost his fight after suffering from life-threatening blood clots in recent days.
On Thursday, a candle-lit vigil was held on the steps outside South Shields Town Hall in a show of support for the family.
Speaking to Fabulous Online last week, Carter's parents didn't realise just how critically ill their son was at first.
Recalling Carter's first moments, Chris said: "I heard Carter screaming when he came out, and the doctor told me everything seemed fine.
"Because he was so small they gave him a trophy feed, which he took perfectly fine."
But later that night, Carter reacted badly to his fourth feed and began vomiting.
He was rushed to the intensive care unit, where an echocardiogram revealed Carter had a suspected heart problem.
Chris, 40, said: "They put him on a ventilator and he had a feeding tube put down him - that's when it hit home all the problems we'd had with Charlie.
"It was like history repeating itself, and that's when it got really scary."
Carter was transferred the following morning to the Freeman Hospital, where he deteriorated quickly.
The couple, who set up the in memory of their first-born son, begged anyone who may be able to help Carter to get in touch via their .
Chris added: "Unless we get the heart, we’re not leaving here with Carter, and that’s the horrible thought going through our heads on a daily basis.
"We’ve been through it once and we don’t want to do it again."
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368. You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours.