Tribute to 'talented' Stella-Lily McCorkindale after Streptococcus A linked death in Belfast

A five-year-old girl who died after contracting Streptococcus A in Northern Ireland has been named.

Stella-Lily McCorkindale was a pupil at Black Mountain Primary School in Belfast.

In a statement, the school spoke of its "tragic loss" and said "the thoughts of the entire school were with her family and friends at this difficult time".

She was described as a "bright and talented little girl".

In a Facebook post, her aunt said it was a pleasure to call the little girl her niece.

"She was a beautiful, sweet, loving and funny little girl who fought so hard to stay with us, she was too good for this world," she said

"Our family will never be the same again. Cannot believe I won’t see her smile again or hear her shout at me for picking on her daddy-her best mate….love you loads wee woman."

A GoFundMe page has been launched to help the family.

It is understood Stella-Lily became ill last week and was receiving treatment at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children.

It is understood to be the first death in NI linked to the current 'Strep A' outbreak.

The school said: "Sadly, the governors, staff and students of Black Mountain Primary School have been informed of the untimely passing of one of our P2 pupils, Stella-Lily McCorkindale.

"This is a tragic loss to the Black Mountain Primary School family and our school community, and the thoughts of the entire school are with the Stella-Lily’s family and friends at this sad and difficult time.

"Stella-Lily was a very bright and talented little girl and very popular with both staff and children and will be greatly missed by everyone at school.

"To assist in supporting our pupils and staff at this sad time, additional trained staff from the Education Authority Critical Incident Response Team have been engaged and will be providing support to the school.

"We recognise that this news may cause worry amongst our school community and we want to reassure parents that we continue to work closely with the Public Health Agency at this time."

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