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05 February 2001 by Jemini Pandya in Bhuj With all of its three hospitals reduced to nothing but a pile of rubble by the earthquake, the inhabitants of the region of Bhuj are relying on the Red Cross field hospital for vital services. Lalu, the "loved one", is the first baby born there. He had to spent the first night sleeping between his mother and grandmother to keep him warm as nights are extremely cold. Lying quietly by the side of his mother and seemingly oblivious to the noise of camera crews around him, the first baby to be born at the Red Cross field hospital in Bhuj, has caused quite a stir. Known for the time being as Lalu, or "loved one" until he is officially named in six days according to ancient Hindu custom and rites, the baby caused his parents and grand-parents quite some concern. "He was going to come out feet first so I advised the surgeon that he should do a Cesarean section," said Finnish Red Cross midwife, Iris Nolvi. The operation went well and Lalu was born at 23.15 on Friday, February 2 and weighed in at 2.56 kg and measured 47.2 cm. His timing was perfect. "We had just put the ward up last night and the baby spent the night sleeping between his mother and grandmother to keep him warm as it gets very cold here at night," added Iris. His 18 year-old mother, Bhaktiben Sambhu Mata, had been brought to the Red Cross hospital late on Friday night by a midwife from their home town of Ratanar, near to the devastated town of Anjar. With the baby in breach position and no other hospital functioning in the area that they knew about, Bhaktiben's family didn't know what to do. "Luckily my husband works near to the Red Cross hospital here in Bhuj and knew that it had opened and told me. There was no where else for me to bring Bhaktiben," says the midwife, Kanta L. Rao. Lalu's proud grandfather said the earthquake had caused his family and neighborhood little worry in comparison to that caused by his daughter-in-law's situation. The Red Cross field hospital has seen a steady stream of patients arriving since it opened three days ago. Set up by the Norwegian, Finnish and German Red Cross Societies as part of their emergency response to the International Federation's appeal for victims of the Indian earthquake, the hospital has a 350-bed capacity, an operating theater with four tables and an out-patient service. One of the earliest to arrive at the field hospital when it opened on Thursday was a ten-day old baby. A premature baby weighing only 1.5 kilogrammes, both of its parents had been killed in the earthquake. It had been brought in by a local nurse that had adopted it and who know needed advice on how to keep him warm and how to feed him. "What we are doing here is essential," says Jan Borgen,the team leader from the Norwegian Red Cross. "There are so many injured people with nowhere to go. And we are especially seeing lots of people with fractures. For more than a week, they have been bedridden and in a lot of pain." The field hospital at Bhuj is one of the biggest ever set up by the Red Cross and 2.1 million euros have been given by the European Community's Humanitarian Office (ECHO) towards the cost. It will also pay for the hospital to keep running for a few months. But the need for the hospital in Bhuj will continue for much longer. Related links India/Gujarat earthquake: Request for assistance More news and reports on Federation operations in India Make a donation |
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The
Red Cross hospital has seen a steady stream of patients arriving since
it opened three days ago.
