Northern Ireland sextuplet dies in hospital

One of Ireland's first sextuplets has died, according to the family's publicist Max Clifford.

Baby girl Kerrie Conway, who was born with three sisters and two brothers in Belfast in May, died in hospital last night.

Parents Nuala and Vincent Conway from Dunamore near Cookstown conceived the babies naturally.

The babies were born 14 weeks prematurely and have being receiving intensive medical treatment since.

Mr Clifford said Kerrie had been progressing well and had been moved from hospital in Belfast to a local hospital.

The conditions of the five surviving sextuplets - Ursula, Austin, Shannon, Karla and Eoghan - is not known.

During the pregnancy, the Conways were told of the risks of proceeding with the multiple birth and were given the option of aborting some of the foetuses.

But mother Nuala said she and her husband never contemplated such a move.

"But we knew without discussion what we both wanted," she said last month.

"These babies are a wonderful gift from God."

She told the Sunday Express newspaper: "Whatever God laid out for our lives, we were taking it."

The babies were delivered by Caesarean section on May 22. They weighed between 1lb 7oz and 2lb 2oz.