My daughter, 24, took antibiotics for a ‘chest infection’ – days later she died after ticking timebomb exploded

VICKI Roberts’ life was “shattered forever” when her “healthy” daughter Chloe collapsed suddenly at home and never woke up.

The 24-year-old had been given antibiotics for a chest infection days earlier – but she was unknowingly suffering from a ticking timebomb.

Chloe, a mum-of-one, had been feeling unwell in the days leading up to her death last November, however she put her cough down to a chest infection.

She had also been complaining of headaches, yet blamed her glasses.

But, it was in fact a brain aneurysm – a weak, bulging spot in an artery wall within the brain that can suddenly rupture, causing dangerous brain bleeds that can be life threatening – that was the cause of her symptoms.

Most aneurysms are small. Larger ones, however, can cause headaches, pain around the eye, double vision and dizziness.

Vicki, from Hereford, Herefordshire, said: “Never in a million years did I ever think [Chloe] would be gone before me.

“Walking out of the hospital knowing my baby girl was gone was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.”

In November 2025, Vicki, 42, received a call while she was looking after Chloe’s daughter Nancy, four, saying that she had collapsed.

“Chloe was feeling a bit poorly but we just thought it was a chest infection because she had a cough,” Vicki said.

“She got some antibiotics.

“I spoke to her on and off throughout the day then I put my granddaughter to bed at 6.30pm.

“At 7pm, I had a phone call from my daughter’s new boyfriend saying she wasn’t breathing.

“I said ‘yeah right, you’re joking’. Then he showed me the emergency services working on her.”

Paramedics worked on Chloe for around an hour at the scene before managing to restart her heart so she could be taken to hospital.

But Chloe never regained consciousness.

Vicki said: “I met the ambulance at the hospital and they took her straight in while we waited in the relatives room.

“It felt like the longest wait of my life.

“She had a CT scan and then they told me she had had a brain aneurysm that had popped and caused a massive bleed on the brain.

“There was nothing they could do.

“They let me kiss her before they took her as I said it might be my last time.

“I couldn’t believe my baby girl had gone. She never had any health issues.

“Just a few headaches now and again but we put it down to her eyesight and she got different glasses.”

Vicki had to break the devastating news to Nancy, who now lives with her full time.

She said: “It broke my heart.

“I had to tell her she was never going to see her mummy again which broke her little heart. Chloe was only 24.

“She had just started a new relationship and she was happy. Chloe was starting life again.”

‘Life not the same’

Vicki said Chloe had “a heart of gold” and was loved by everyone who knew her.

She said: “Life without her is not the same. It’s way too quiet and I miss her voice.

“Her daughter is the double of her mummy and very noisy like her.

“It still doesn’t feel real and I’m still waiting for her to ring me but I know that’s never going to happen.

“My daughter was bubbly and had a heart of gold. She would help anyone and everyone.

“Her smile lit up any room she went into and she had a lot of friends.

“Chloe loved singing and her favourite was Adele. We played a clip of her singing at her funeral.

“She was adored by all her family, especially her daughter and they loved spending time together.”