Pregnant hijacking victim gives birth with bullet still lodged in back

Dr Deon van der Merwe, the gynaecologist who performed the cesarean on the woman who was shot on Friday evening said “it takes a very special kind of barbarian, to shoot five rounds at a vehicle occupied by a pregnant woman and three terrified girls. Had the bullets been fired a few degrees off, then Renske and her partner would not have made it to the N4 tollgate, never mind the hospital.”

Renske Erasmus, 31, and her partner, 38-year-old Christo Mulder, were both fired at and wounded Friday evening in a hijacking attempt just off of the N4, reports Middelburg Observer.

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The couple and their three daughters were on their way home from Delmas, and had turned off onto a gravel road when three assailants opened fire. Mulder was busy opening a gate when they were ambushed, and both he and Renske were wounded twice.

In a moment of panic, Renske fled with the vehicle and rushed to the Middelburg Toll Plaza, where she drove down one of the boom gates. She was assisted by traffic officers who happened to be patrolling the area.

She had barely notified them of her boyfriend being left behind when he also arrived at the scene by foot, wounded and bleeding.

The family rushed to Life Midmed Hospital and had just been stabilised when Renske went into labour.

Before she had even gone into surgery, an emergency cesarean section had to be done, and Renske delivered her baby boy. The miracle baby is to be named, Fourie, but will be given a second name for being such a little fighter.

The little boy who was born just after 36 weeks, weighs 3.6kgs and is a good 50cm long. Both he and his mother are recovering well.

Mulder, was also discharged so that he could take care of the three girls, aged 9, 7 and 4. Fortunately, they were not injured in the process.

The shooting incident could very well have claimed the lives of both Fourie and his mother, who said that it was by the grace of God that he was born alive and well.

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