Officials Say No Truth to Rumor Of an Infant Death in Warrenton

There appears to be no truth to a rumor spreading around the county that a baby died at the Antiques Show in Warrenton.

According to the version of the tale relayed to the Record, a mother was carrying her four-month old baby in a papoose while shopping in Warrenton. The baby supposedly died of heat exhaustion, but by the time the mother noticed something was wrong, it was too late.

Lt. David Beyer of the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office and Fayette County EMS Director Sharon Muzny said they never received a call about a deceased baby. Muzny said she began hearing the rumors two weeks ago.

Heather Tyler, spokesperson for St. Mark’s Medical Center in La Grange, said the hospital never received a baby from the Antiques Show. Pct. 2 Justice of the Peace Sheila Coufal, whose precinct covers the Warrenton area, said she never got a call for an inquest.

The Record even contacted Washington County EMS, in case such an incident might have happened across the county line in Shelby or at La Bahia Hall. Kevin Deramus, the EMS director there, said his department never received a call about a baby in distress. Deramus said he heard the rumor but thought the episode happened in Fayette County.

Dorris Eckermann, proprietor of Warrenton Grocery Store, said she has heard the story as well, but Eckermann quickly dispelled it when the Record asked.

“That’s not true,” Eckermann firmly stated. “I think some people like to make up stories and get a kick out of it.”