Outrage follows after newborn dies after being dumped in Bluff toilet
"We have services to assist those who feel desperate and who have nowhere or no-one to turn to"
THE death of a newborn baby boy was met with heartbreak and anger in the Bluff community after he was found dumped and abandoned in a toilet on Tara Road on Friday, 8 December.
Rescue Care paramedics reported finding members of the public already performing CPR on the newborn.
The advanced life support paramedics took over and despite 30 minutes of resuscitation attempts, the newborn was declared dead at the scene.
READ: Bluff hosts ‘baby safe’ solution for unwanted babies
The exact site of the toilet where the infant was abandoned, was not publicised.
Zoe Moore, who chairs the ward committee’s vulnerable group and gender sub-committee, said she was heartbroken that a life was lost and that a mother never knew where to turn for help. “With a medical centre across the road and a baby safe close by to where the baby was found, and the support my portfolio offers through Open Arms (a project of Isaiah 54 Children’s Sanctuary on the Bluff), she (the mother) would have been assisted and shown love. Now there is just heartache and uproar in the wake of such an unfortunate incident,” she said.
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She urged the community to share the Open Arms manifesto across social media and join the vulnerable groups sub-committee to educate and assist these mothers and avoid such tragedies. “We can prevent this from happening again to another vulnerable, defenseless child. We have services to assist those who feel desperate and who have nowhere or no-one to turn to. Use us, let us help you. You are never alone,” she added.
Youandi Gilain from Isaiah 54’s Open Arms said it saddens her as there is help available for moms who are unable to keep their babies. At the same time it also makes me angry as I know how people can judge these mothers to a point where they are forced to keep their babies so that they are not made out to be a bad mother in front of everyone. “If this mommy knew about Open Arms SA, she would have had the guidance, emotional support and love she needed to make the right decision for her and her baby.
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“And if she still was scared, she would have known that within a five minute walk from the toilet where she left the baby, was a ‘baby safe’ where she could have left her baby anonymously,” she added. Open Arms offers 24/7 support, encouragement and information to all pregnant and birth mothers. The support is non-judgmental, confidential and anonymous.
When they access funding, Open Arms would like to print posters to distribute to clinics and hospitals to enhance awareness of its work. “We are here to help, you are not alone,” she said. For more information WhatsApp or SMS Open Arms on 084-488-1359, email on help@openarmssa.org or find them on Facebook: Open Arms SA.
