An 18-month-old boy in Gilbert, Arizona, was declared dead in a hospital emergency room on Super Bowl Sunday, only to be discovered still breathing nearly six hours later inside the facilityâs morgue. The child, identified by his family as Vincent Lorenzo Fiordilino, ultimately survived the ordeal and has since been released from the hospital, though he continues to require medical support and therapy. The extraordinary sequence of events is now under review by the Maricopa County Attorneyâs Office, while local police have recommended child-abuse charges against the parents.
According to a police report obtained by NBC News and its Phoenix affiliate KPNX, the incident began around 5:38 p.m. on February 8, 2026. Relatives discovered the toddler floating face-down in the familyâs backyard swimming pool during a Super Bowl gathering. A relative performed CPR while a 911 call was made. First responders transported the boy to Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, where emergency staff, including a physician identified in the report as Dr. A. Toosi (believed to be Aryan Toosi), continued resuscitation efforts.
At approximately 6:20 p.m., the doctor pronounced the child dead and requested a moment of silence. Police officers and family members present in the emergency room later told investigators they believed the boy was still gasping for air after the declaration. One officer reported hearing additional audible gasps as staff prepared to move the child to the hospitalâs âcold roomââa refrigerated space kept between 36 and 39 degrees Fahrenheit that functions as a temporary morgue. Hospital personnel attributed the sounds to agonal breathing, a common post-mortem phenomenon sometimes linked to residual air or prior chest compressions. The cold-room door was closed around 7:23 p.m.
More than four hours later, at 11:52 p.m., a team from the Maricopa County Medical Examinerâs Office arrived to retrieve the body and found the toddler breathing. The family was notified immediately, and the boy was airlifted to Phoenix Childrenâs Hospital for further care.
Gilbert police stated that the child âultimately survived and has been released from the hospital.â However, investigators recommended that the Maricopa County Attorneyâs Office pursue child-abuse charges against the parents. The police report notes that both parents admitted smoking marijuana that morning and suggests their impaired state of mind may have contributed to the lack of supervision that allowed the toddler to reach the pool. A spokesperson for the county attorney declined to comment on any potential charges.
Mercy Gilbert Medical Center confirmed it conducted an internal review of what it called a âheartbreaking situationâ but has not released the findings. The hospital also declined to answer questions about whether the physician who made the initial death pronouncement remains on staff. The doctorâs attorney, citing the ongoing police matter and patient confidentiality, stated that there is âmuch more to this case, both factually and medically, than has been reported thus far.â
A crowdfunding page established by the family indicates that Vincent was breathing with ventilator assistance after the incident. While he reportedly avoided serious brain damage, he will need ongoing medical monitoring and extensive therapy. The family has largely declined public comment.
The case has drawn widespread attention for the rare and alarming failure to confirm death before placing a living child in refrigerated storage, raising questions about clinical protocols for pronouncing deathâespecially in pediatric cases involving near-drowningâand the communication between medical staff and law enforcement on scene.
Source: NBC News