Paramedics attend to the baby girl after she was rescued.
A 27-year-old woman who was arrested for allegedly dumping a newborn baby girl in a stormwater drain in the Newlands East area of Durban has been granted bail.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson, colonel Thembeka Mbhele, said the suspect was arrested at a local hospital and was facing attempted murder charges.
She was granted R5‚000 bail in the Ntuzuma Magistrate Court on Wednesday after baby Sibanisethu‚ named by the community‚ was found in a drain, two weeks ago.
State prosecutor Seema Reddy did not oppose her bail bid which Magistrate Ravi Pillay granted, according to the Sowetan.
It was passersby who contacted authorities after they were alerted to the child’s cries. After a nearly four-hour operation by numerous responders, the infant was rescued unharmed and flown to the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital. Doctors there declared the child unharmed, but cold, and said her survival was “a miracle”.
Sibanisethu (ray of light in isiZulu) was believed to be between one and three days old when she was extricated.
She was moved to another hospital from Albert Luthuli and placed in the care of social services. The child is in a good condition, according to the province’s health MEC.
(Compiled by Gopolang Chawane, additional reporting by ANA)
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