A Chinese baby boy declared dead has been saved from cremation after he started crying at a funeral parlour.
The parents of the critically ill little boy - who was just seven days old – had agreed to end his medical treatment at Anhui Provincial Children's Hospital in eastern China, according to hospital sources who spoke to Xinhua state news agency.
The boy's death certificate had been issued and he was sent to a funeral parlour in Hefei, where staff then heard him crying.
"It was when the funeral home staff made a routine check on the body before it was to be cremated that the baby emitted a tiny cry," said a police spokesman.
"The shocked funeral worker scooped the child up in his arms screaming 'its alive!'"
It is unclear how long the boy had been at the funeral parlour, or when his cremation was due to take place.
The boy – who had been born with 'congenital respiratory system malformation' – was sent back to hospital and is still receiving treatment for dehydration and an infection.
A source told Xinhua: "Because the baby still had life signs, we continued to give him transfusion to maintain his life for humanitarian reasons."
The doctor who confirmed the baby had died, Dr. Wen Cha, has been suspended and an investigation has been launched into the incident, according to the hospital.