Toddler Declared Dead Was Found Alive in the Hospital Morgue

A family gathering in Arizona quickly became a nightmare that would forever change one family after 18-month-old Vincent Lorenzo Fiordilino was found floating face-down in a backyard swimming pool during a Super Bowl party.
Despite desperate efforts to save him, a doctor declared the toddler dead. But in a shocking turn of events, Fiordilino was discovered alive in a hospital morgue, setting off a chain of events that has culminated in a massive lawsuit against several medical officials.

According to the family’s lawsuit obtained by USA Today, Dr. Aryan Toosi pronounced Fiordilino dead at 6:20 p.m. on Oct. 23. The family believed they had lost their child. However, concerns later arose about signs that the toddler might still be alive.

“As I was hugging him, air came out of him,” his mother, Alexus Fiordilino, said in an interview with The New York Times.

Alexus and her family alerted a police officer and hospital staff that Fiordilino seemed to be breathing, but they were told the movements were signs of “agonal breathing,” which she recalled being described as “the final death breath,” according to the suit.

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The family has alleged that concerns about Fiordilino’s condition were not adequately addressed after he was declared dead. After his parents alerted medical staff, Fiordilino was rushed to Phoenix Children’s Hospital for emergency treatment.

News that Fiordilino was alive brought his family a measure of hope, but it was soon overshadowed by fears about the extent of his injuries. According to the family’s lawsuit, the toddler suffered severe brain damage associated with oxygen deprivation and faces significant long-term medical challenges.

“I can’t believe Vincent was all alone in there,” the mother told The New York Post. “It haunts me still to this day when I think about it. I hate that he went through five hours in a morgue by himself, struggling to breathe.”

Now, the family wants to know how a child could be pronounced dead and later found alive, and whether opportunities to intervene were missed. According to The New York Times, they are suing Dr. Toosi and Dignity Health, which operates Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, alleging negligence in the care Fiordilino received. The case places the hospital’s handling of the incident under scrutiny, seeking accountability for the harm the family says their son suffered.

For Fiordilino’s mother, the issue is deeply personal. Now, as the legal battle moves forward, the family is seeking answers and accountability for what they allege went wrong. Fiordilino survived, but his family says the consequences of that day may follow him for the rest of his life.

“If there was a competent doctor in the room that day, it would have gone very differently,” Alexus continued to The New York Post. “Our boy was [denied] medical treatment that would have significantly changed the outlook of his life.”