The heartbreaking moment baby struggles to breathe in mouldy flat - in the same block where another child died

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Wailing and panting, his tiny body desperate for air - this is the chilling moment a four-month-old baby was filmed struggling to breathe in a mould-ridden home. The footage was filmed by his frantic mum to show medics, moments before he was taken to hospital.

Gabriel was treated for bronchiolitis after being taken to hospital from his home at the Ilminster block on Rochdale's Freehold estate. It's the same block that was home to Awaab Ishak, a little boy whose death has been linked to mould and damp in the flat where he lived, as the Manchester Evening News reported last month.

Awaab died just days after his second birthday in December 2020. A post-mortem suggested environmental lung exposure led to Awaab's death, a Rochdale Coroners Court hearing was told in July.

READ MORE: A two-year-old is dead and other children are struggling to breathe

An investigation by the Manchester Evening News has since uncovered damp and mould problems across other properties on the estate, with young families describing having to make hospital visits because their children struggle to breathe. Our investigation prompted the coroner to call on further action from police ahead of Awaab's inquest, while social landlord Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH) said it would check every home on the estate.

Gabriel's family are among residents who say they have a constant battle with mould in the bathroom, living room, a bedroom and a kitchen, which was 'black' with the infestation at one stage. Now three, the little boy lives with mum Vilma Lavres, dad Amanyllo Alfonso, and their eight-year-old daughter Laura.

The family has previously tried to leave the estate. Vilma told the M.E.N : "I went to the council with the video, they said there was