A neighbor’s child died without any negligence on her part; is she required to pay an expiation?

Question: I have a child who is five years old. One day, he and his mother were at our neighbors’ place, so his mother left him with me in the house. Then she went out to work and told his mother that he was in the house. In the meantime, he went to the oven to get some bread, and the oven fell on him and he died. So, is there any expiation for me, such as fasting or something else, or for his mother?

Answer: We hope that nothing is required of you two; because this is an ordinary thing that happens to people, and it is not called negligence. This happens with the people of the palm groves and the people of the farms; they may leave the child to go to the water channel and he swims in it or in the pond, and he dies because of that. These are ordinary matters where there is no way to prevent them, and they are excused, if Allah wills.