The family of a Shropshire baby hailed as a “miracle” have praised doctors and nurses at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital for saving their son’s life.

Ollie Harris was stillborn without a heartbeat and unable to breathe at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital on January 12.

It is believed the umbilical cord may have wrapped around Ollie’s neck in the womb or that mum Kelly may have haemorrhaged during labour.

But staff at the hospital’s neo-natal unit were able to keep him alive on a ventilator and used therapeutic hypothermia treatment to cool his body temperature with an ice pack.

His parents were unable to touch or hold him for the first week of his life until doctors started to bring Ollie’s body temperature back to a normal level.

But Ollie was able to return home to White House Gardens in Ditherington three weeks after he was born and his delighted parents today issued a heartfelt thank you to doctors and nurses at the RSH who helped save his life.

It was an especially poignant moment for the couple, whose baby son Kane died of cot death in 2006.

Kelly, a mother of six, said: “Everything was fine during pregnancy but then Ollie was born stillborn.

“We w­ere later told by nurses he had not been breathing for the first 13 minutes and that they had brought him back to life.”

Dad Fred said: “When Ollie was born there were only two nurses around but then suddenly lots of doctors and nurses rushed around and started pushing his chest.

“He was whisked away and we had to wait eight hours to see him.

“When the doctors started bringing his body temperature back to normal and we were able to hold him it started to feel like this was going to work out. It’s amazing what they can do.”

Kelly added: “It was an overwhelming feeling bringing Ollie home but it was also pretty nerve-wracking as we were hoping he would be okay.

“If it wasn’t for the team at the neo-natal unit at Shrewsbury Ollie wouldn’t be here and we are so grateful to them. He is our little miracle.”

John and Betty Harris, Ollie’s grandparents who live in Leominster, said they were delighted Ollie was back home and healthy.

Betty said: “You just don’t expect things like this to happen. I do not see how a child can be born dead and brought back to life.”

The couple have five other children – Chloe, 13, Katlin, 12, Jordan, 10, Kairan, five, and Shay, four.

By Peter Kitchen