{alltv} 4-year-old's soap death enrages 'General Hospital' fans

Heartless bastards!

Outraged "General Hospital" fans lit up the show's message boards after the ABC soap killed off 4-year-old Jake Webber -- who was removed from life support on yesterday's show after being left brain-dead by a hit-and-run driver in Port Charles.

It's a stunning jolt for the world of daytime drama, where romantic trysts, amnesia, kidnappings and comas are standard -- but the death of a young child is extremely rare.

It's also not the first time that "GH" has gone this shocking route.

In 1994, Tony and Bobbie's daughter , BJ, was in a car accident that left her brain-dead -- and her heart was transplanted into her cousin, 6-year-old Maxie.

Still, this sudden turn of events left most "GH" fans angry.

"OMG GH! You killed a kid!" wrote one fan on abc.com.

(Jake, also known as Jake Spencer -- it's complicated -- was never shown during yesterday's episode.)

"I am soooo done with GH for killing off Jake," wrote "Miztee256." "There was no reason to do that and I will not watch GH anymore."

"Hate it, hate it, hate it," opined another fan, CarsonJasam.

While Jake's death brought life to fellow Port Charles resident Josslyn Jacks -- Carly and Jasper's year-old, cancer-stricken daughter who will get Jake's transplanted kidney -- his shocking death sent the show's passionate fans into a tizzy.

Most "GH" fans on the show's abc.com site praised its cast, and some said they were OK with Jake's death -- but many said they were disgusted. (Jake wandered off from his house and was hit by a car -- with several "GH" characters possibly driving the death car.)

"Hey! Isn't ABC a Disney Network? Aren't they supposed to be about 'family?' " wrote carolegenni. "Great job killing off kids and destroying families on General Hospital!"

"I am very disappointed that the Disney Corporation has financed a soap opera . . . which portrays children who are victims of violence," write ays786.

"Any hope I had of being able to watch this show again died along with Jake Spencer."

"While the tragic death of Jake Webber brings unspeakable heartache to his family and all of Port Charles, this is a story of love and redemption in the face of devastating loss," a show spokesman said yesterday.

"More dramatic and life-altering moments will develop as the show moves forward."