MOBILE, Ala. (AP) - An Alabama toddler who drew worldwide attention after he was born without a nose has died.
Eli Thompson's father, Jeremy Finch, posted the news Sunday on the social media site Facebook, a day after Eli was pronounced dead at Springhill Medical Center in Mobile. Thompson had turned 2-years-old March 4.
Finch's post expressed sadness, saying "We lost our little buddy last night. I'll never be able to make sense of why this happened, and this will hurt deeply for a long time. But I'm so blessed to have had this beautiful boy in my life!"
Multiple media outlets report Thompson was born with congenital arhinia, an extremely rare birth defect that affects only one in 197 million births.
Finch told Al.com (http://bit.ly/2sEsAdU ) that the family is finalizing funeral arrangements.