Russian Baby Dies In Sewage Pipe After Road Collapse In Bryansk

An 18-month-old baby has been found dead after being swept away in a sewage pipe following a road collapse in Russia over the weekend.

Mother Tatyana Didorenko was walking with her child in the Russian city of Bryansk when a water pipe burst, causing the ground to give way beneath them, the Associated Press reported. Both the mother and child fell through the collapsing ground, though only the baby was swept away by rushing water.

The child's body was found three miles from the scene of the accident, according to the Sun.

Police were able to rescue the mother using a rope shortly after the incident occurred, but the child's body wasn't recovered until at least 24 hours later, the Telegraph reports.

Officials have opened a criminal investigation, looking into possible "gross negligence" by city workers as a likely cause in the death of the child, according to a Reuters video report.

Shortly after the accident, nearby residents lined parts of the town square with toys and flowers in honor of the family.

For more on the story, watch the Reuters video report above.