Two parents in Brisbane, Australia, have been left heartbroken, distraught, and "haunted" by the sudden passing of their 6-week-old twins, who died in a suspected co-sleeping accident last week. According to a close family friend, Violet and Indiana — described as “perfectly healthy and extremely beautiful” twins — were found unresponsive on November 27 by their parents, and each later died. Now, their parents are struggling to cope with the loss of the two babies they so desperately wanted.
With much of the family's privacy being closely guarded, police have not yet revealed the parents' names.
But according to Kieran Garrett, a close friend who has spoken on behalf of the family, the parents are shell-shocked.
“I’ve spoken to the parents and spent a lot of time with them as well. They’re not coping at all, as you can imagine,” Garratt told Yahoo. “I don’t even have a set of adjectives for it. They’re just ghostly. Haunted.”
An investigation remains ongoing, though authorities have not said the deaths appear to be suspicious.
Emergency services arrived at the home, which sits in Sunnybank Hills, a suburban area of Brisbane, Australia, about 6 a.m. Nov. 27. Once there, paramedics reportedly administered first aid to both newborns.
One of the babies could not be saved and died at home. The other was rushed to hospital, but in serious condition. She was pronounced dead several days later.
According to a Queensland Police statement, the preliminary findings of the investigation "suggest the babies were sleeping together throughout the night and were discovered unresponsive this morning." Further reports claim that the newborns weren't just sleeping together but co-sleeping with mom before their deaths.
Currently, the bodies both remain with a coroner, as police continue their investigation. In the meantime, their parents have reportedly moved out of their home, unable to cope with the memories of what happened.
Kieran Garratt said the twins were their parents' "last ditch" effort to add to their family.
"Just given that they'd had two already and they're in their 40s, I think they were done after this," he told 7 News.
The couple's other two children include a 5-year-old daughter and a 3-year-old boy who has autism.
“I spent some time with them on Friday," Garratt shared. "The oldest was pretty upset but she’s been fairly resilient. The younger boy — his behavior is different, the poor lad. He was really gentle with the girls when they were alive.”
Garratt has since set up a GoFundMe page to help the parents cover funeral costs.
"These Angels graced us for only 6 beautiful weeks but have created such a hole since their passing," Garratt wrote. "It is hard to see where the next smile will come from for their beloved parents."
To date, the page has raised more than $23,000, surpassing its initial goal of $20,000.
"If I was pessimistic about humanity before, I'm not now, it's just incredible," he told Nine News. "Just a shame it takes something like this to realize there are heaps of good people out there."
Garratt said the deaths offer a heartbreaking reminder to parents everywhere to hug their children a little tighter and not take their presence for granted.
"Galvani[z]e your own love and care for your own kids," he said. "You just look at things a bit differently when it's someone you know, just to hold onto them, because [the parents] are just broken."
