Heroic mother dies in house fire after safely tossing 12-day-old baby from second floor

A heroic mother died after saving her newborn baby in a house fire in Wyoming, Illinois on Monday morning. Shelby Carter, 21, saved her baby girl by smashing a window, strapping her into a car seat and tossing her out of a second-floor window of her home, which was engulfed in flames.

Carter died due to carbon monoxide intoxication from smoke inhalation. The fire is said to have broken out at around 10.30am.

When rescuers from Wyoming Fire Department arrived at the scene, they noticed 12-day-old Keana Davis on the ground, with minor burn. Keana was immediately transported to OSF St. Luke Medical Center. The little one has been released after medical evaluation.

"It's just incredible that she was able to pull her thoughts together to save her baby. It's just too bad she couldn't save herself; but I'd say it's nothing short of a miracle the way it ended up," Wyoming-Speer Fire Protection District chief Ed Foglesonger told Washington Post.

Stark County Sheriff Steve Sloan hailed the mother a "hero" for her selfless act.

As of now, the cause of the fire at two-story house on the 900 block of N Galena Avenue has not been identified. The house was occupied by Carter and her fiance DeShawn Davis with their newborn along with the deceased's mother Kathy Hardy. At the time of the incident, Davis and Hardy were away from their home.