Georgia parents say their daughter, 7, died from flu complications

COLUMBUS, Ga. — The parents of a 7-year-old Georgia girl are mourning her death after they said she died from complications of the flu.

Anyanna and Brandon Burgess said told WTVM that their daughter Khalilah Burgess could light up any room she walked into with her smile and infectious spirit.

“Always energetic, a tomboy, a daddy’s girl, even if she were here now she would be bouncing off the wall,” mother Anyanna Burgess said.

The couple said Khalilah woke up with a fever on Saturday. But by Halloween night, things took a drastic turn.

Anyanna Burgess told the TV station that Khalilah had just gotten into the bathtub when she started having problems breathing.

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“She was saying like, ‘I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe.’ And her little lips were starting to turn blue and her fingertips were starting to turn blue,” Anyanna Burgess said.

The mother said by the time paramedics arrived she knew it was too late.

“They got here really fast -- in under four minutes. But honestly, before they got here, I just knew she had already left,” Anyanna Burgess said.

To make things worse, Halloween was her birthday.

The parents told WTVM that Khalilah was not vaccinated against the flu. Now, they are urging others to pay attention to any symptoms if their child is sick.

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