Ill Monroe girl stuck in Brazil

MONROE — Alaina Arnold was always a healthy baby.

She dodged the usual childhood ailments. She never even had a serious diaper rash, her grandmother Cynthia Arnold said.

That lucky streak ended after Alaina went to Brazil with her family in December.

The 23-month-old Monroe girl came down with a fever that developed into far more serious medical problems, family members in Monroe said.

Now, she is stuck with her parents and sister in southern Brazil, as family in Monroe struggle to bring the group home.

“Every time we turn around, it’s an obstacle,” Alaina’s grandmother said.