Woman killed in ‘freak accident’ as hospital lift cuts her in two

Rocío Cortés Núñez (Facebook)
Updated 21 August 2017
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Woman killed in ‘freak accident’ as hospital lift cuts her in two

DUBAI: A woman has died in a Spanish hospital after she was chopped in half in a lift shortly after giving birth.

The horrific incident happened when Rocío Cortés Núñez, 25, was wheeled into the lift on a stretcher and the doors apparently closed on her head.

According to media reports the lift started to move up from level two, to level three, severing her legs from the rest of her body at Valme Hospital in Seville, Spain.
The victim was also the mother of two daughter aged three and four, according to local press reports.
According to local media reports Nunez had just undergone a C-section and was being taken to a maternity unit when the accident happened.

“We heard a loud blow in the elevator,” her husband Jose Gaspar said.

The victim’s husband-of-four-years, told Spanish paper ABC: “This cannot end like this. This time it has been Rocio but tomorrow it could be another person. I’m a total wreck.”

It is understood that the porter that was pushing the stretcher did not have enough time to move Nunez out of danger.

Regional Health Minister Marina Alvarez confirmed the victim was trapped after the lift made an ‘unusual movement’ as the worker attempted to remove her on a stretcher.

Witnesses say the scene was like “something out of a horror film.”

The victim’s newborn baby was not with her at the time because it was being taken to another hospital for treatment.

“If they hadn’t taken the baby to another hospital she could have suffered the same fate because they always put newborns on their mother’s breast, even when it’s been a Caesarian,” an unnamed hospital worker told the local press.

Now her brother-in-law, David Gaspar, has called for action to be taken.

He said: “It’s incredible. We still can’t believe what’s happened. Something has to happen. This cannot go unpunished.”


‘Mrs Doubtfire’: Queen’s image on new Australian coins ridiculed

Updated 59 min 44 sec ago
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‘Mrs Doubtfire’: Queen’s image on new Australian coins ridiculed

  • The ‘stunning heavenly’ 50 cent and $5 Australian coins were revealed by the mint this week
  • The Australian mint posted an explanation of the coins’ details

‘SYDNEY: Australia’s royal mint has defended a widely-lampooned image of the late Queen Elizabeth II on new commemorative coins celebrating her life.
The “stunning heavenly” 50 cent and $5 Australian coins were revealed by the mint this week, featuring a front-facing effigy of the queen to celebrate her reign, 100 years after her birth.
But the royal’s image, which the Royal Australian Mint described on Thursday as a “stunning portrait” rendered with “warmth and dignity,” evoked widespread online mirth.
“No, stop don’t release it, melt them all and get at proper portrait of The Queen not a screen shot of Mrs. Doubtfire,” said one user in reply to the mint’s monetary revelation on Facebook, comparing the portrait to the character played by Robin Williams in the 1993 film.
“There’s a reason most portraits are from the side. Looks like she just ran into a wall,” said another.
Queen Elizabeth, who died in 2022, reigned for more than 70 years and had strong ties with Australia which has the British monarch as its head of state.
The Australian mint posted an explanation of the coins’ details, including motifs celebrating the late monarch’s love of horses and corgi dogs.
“Our coin images don’t always capture the full beauty of a design once it’s etched in metal,” it conceded.