Seventeen-month-old girl tragically killed in dog attack in St Helens

A 17-month-old girl has tragically died after being attacked by the family dog at her home in St Helens.

Bella-Rae Birch was rushed to hospital after emergency services arrived on the scene at Bidston Avenue, Blackbrook, on Monday afternoon but she sadly died as a result of her injuries.

The dog, which was only bought by the family a week ago, has been put down and a police investigation is underway to determine the breed and whether it is legal under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

Superintendent Steve Brizell of Merseyside Police said Bella-Rae “lost her life in the most unimaginably terrible circumstances”.

Adding: “Detailed investigations are continuing into this tragic event.

“We are working to identify all the previous owners of the dog so we can establish its history.”

Police were called to Bidston Avenue at around 3.50pm on Monday following a report that a child had been attacked by a dog.

One neighbour, who gave her name as Jordan, said she ran to help Bella-Rae.

She said: “We pulled up from school and heard screaming. I just ran over to try to help and started CPR until the paramedics took over.”

The neighbour, who is due to go to university to train as a paramedic, said the child’s parents were “hysterical”.

Fellow resident Joanne Matthews, 53, said: “She was such a beautiful little girl, toddling about.”

She added: “I saw them bring the dog out. I couldn’t tell what breed it was but from the back it looked like a Staffordshire bull terrier or pitbull.”

Superintendent Brizell confirmed officers will remain on scene at Biston Avenue throughout Tuesday.

Extensive CCTV, witness and house-to-house enquiries have been carried out and police are urging anyone with any information about the incident or the dog to come forward.

How to contact police

Anyone with any information is asked to contact us via our social media desk @MerPolCC or ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’ on Facebook, with reference 22000196837.

Alternatively, you can call the independent charity @CrimestoppersUK anonymously, on 0800 555 111. You can also use their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information.