Mum dies giving birth to stillborn baby as devastated family pay tribute to woman who ‘put everyone else first’
A MUM has died giving birth to a still born baby as her devastated family paid tribute to woman who "put everyone else first".
Asher Tonge, 43, was rushed to hospital to deliver her fourth child in Leeds but never came home.
Teacher Ms Tonge was about to deliver her child when doctors said her baby's heart had stopped on January 1.
After the devastating news, the beloved mother was told she would have to give birth to the baby naturally.
She went to hospital three days later where she was put into labour for 12 hours.
But Asher's family said she was rushed for an emergency section after collapsing.
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Tragedy struck the family when she died during surgery - unable to hold her baby.
The devoted mother left three children aged 20, 16 and four.
The tragedy comes as the number of women dying either during pregnancy or soon after has increased to its highest level for 20 years.
The MBRRACE-UK report found women from black ethnic backgrounds are three times more likely to die compared to white women.
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Professor Marian Knight, director of the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit and MBRRACE-UK maternal reporting lead, pointed to "clear examples of maternity systems under pressure.
FAMILY DEVASTATED
And tributes have now been paid to the mother, with heartbroken Asher's 23-year-old niece Samiha Ali saying she had been "like a mum to her".
She said: "It's been a massive shock to us all, it's just one of those things you don't expect, we were all devastated about the loss of the baby and last time I spoke to her I was just trying to console her about that.
"I just thought she would go to the hospital for the stillbirth and then come home to recover - we never could have expected this.
"We are all still trying to wrap our heads around what has happened - it's just horrible. It's been really hard, she has left behind three children so we are all just trying to pull together and help out where we can.
"I was telling her on the Thursday to be strong, it's going to be ok, you have to stay strong for your other three children and even then she was saying there are so many people going through worse than she is.
"She was like that, always thinking about everyone else and how it would impact them.
"She was a very hopeful and faithful person, she was so down to earth, caring, she wasn't worried about her pain she was worried about everybody else. She would always put others first.
"Auntie Asher wore a smile on her face and even through the most difficult times she put her faith in God and hoped for the best. She adored her kids and made sure they grew up with everything and more.
"She was a second mum to me, a best friend to my mum and a companion to many.
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"Whatever she had she gave and would always remember people who were less fortunate. She worked as a computing teacher to teenagers of which she enjoyed very much and was excellent at her job.
"My auntie was a warm, kind, compassionate and understanding woman and will be missed by many. She will forever live on in our memories and her children." Investigations into how Asher died are continuing."