Girl dies after camp delays hospital care

The family of a 6-year-old girl who died at a summer camp reported the camp to police Wednesday after its staff delayed informing them that the girl had fallen ill, local media reported.

The girl, surnamed Fang, came down with a fever on July 23 while she was away at a traditional Chinese culture camp at a temple in Chongming county, according to a report in the Xinmin Evening News.

Rather than give the girl medicine to bring down her fever, the camp's staff attempted to cool her down by making her sweat in bed, the report said. They also fed her hot ginger soup.

The staff did not tell Fang's family that she was ill until her condition deteriorated in the early morning of July 26. They called her father, who rushed to Baozhen People's Hospital in Chongming county to meet her.

Fang's temperature surged to 41 C and she fell unconscious the same day, so her family had her transferred to Xin Hua Hospital in Yangpu district, the report said. She died Tuesday after several days of treatment.

Family members said that the camp staff told them that they did not take Fang to the hospital because they had successfully treated other children's fevers in the past with ginger soup, according to the report. They did not know why the treatment failed to help Fang.

Fang's family paid 4,000 yuan ($653) for her to attend the camp. Her father met the head of the camp, a man surnamed Wen, 66, through an acquaintance in June.

According to Fang's uncle, the children usually got up at 4:30 am each day to recite Buddhist scriptures, the report said. The staff did not answer questions about whether the camp was properly licensed, the report said.