Durban – A day-old newborn baby was found dumped, dehydrated and covered in ants on Tuesday morning in Burlington Heights, a suburb between Chatsworth and Shallcross, south of Durban.
The day-old newborn that was found on a pile of rubbish next to the road, covered in ants and dehydrated was recovering well in hospital.
The baby boy was found around 10am on Tuesday morning, medics said.
Netcare 911 spokesperson Shawn Herbst said they called the hospital on Wednesday morning to find out how the baby was doing and they were told the baby was recovering well.
Herbst said on Tuesday a Netcare 911 Emergency Care Practitioner assessed the child which still had the placenta attached.
“The baby was completely covered in ants, had severe dehydration and was battling to breathe. The child was placed in a Netcare 911 ambulance where he was treated. Once stabilised the baby was transported to a local hospital for further assessment,” said Herbst.
He said they usually found newborns and foetuses all over the place, they were not specific to a particular area.
However, he said most of the time prostitution was involved in the dumping of babies and foetuses.
“We find that a lot of mothers have abortions in public toilets an we end up finding a baby in public toilets,” said Herbst.
On Monday a woman appeared in court on charges of attempted murder after a newborn was found in the Isithebe area, north of Durban on Sunday morning.
The baby was discovered in a bucket near a bush next to a river by a passerby who contacted the authorities.
At the start of June a baby boy was left on the roadside in Chatsworth. The baby was found wrapped in a cloth. The woman accused of dumping the baby was arrested but later released on a warning.
Daily News
