Post-one week of the rain and flood in the southern districts, the health team of six members of Srivaikuntam Government Hospital who rescued more than 30 patients shared their experience.
Nithiya Rajkumar, doctor at Srivakuntam GH, started her duty on December 17 (Sunday) on the day when it poured. The staff were busy with their routine work when someone noticed water leaking from the roof of the old hospital building.
Fearing the worse, Dr. Nithiya ordered the staff to move the patients to a new building on the same premises. “As we were only six, we moved all patients and important equipment like Ultrasound Machine (USG) and registers to the first floor of the new building which was unoccupied,” she said.
There was also power fluctuation which made them panicky, considering the safety of patients. By the end of the day, the water entered the hospital and was slowly rising.
At around 2 a.m. on Monday, a group of 10 women from nearby Athinathapuram rushed to the hospital seeking refuge as their houses had gone under water. It was at that moment that the hospital staff sensed the seriousness of the situation outside. But by then the mobile networks were down and they could not contact officials for rescue.
As the hospital already had 30 patients - antenatal and postnatal - and as many attendants, Dr. Nithiya wondered how to continue the treatment, serve food and meet other needs. They managed somhow till daybreak with the hope of getting help in the morning. But there was no letup in the downpour which led too breaching of nearby waterbodies. The water came rushing in bringing down the hospital walls and houses nearby.
While witnessing such horrific scenes, a hospital worker, S. Esakkimuthu, 28, braving the downpour and damaged roads, drove all the way from his house, seven-km away, to report for duty. Realising food was their priority, Mr. Esakkimuthu went through the waist-high water to a nearby shop to get the provisions. “I picked up a bunch of bananas from an abandoned shop for the patients,” he said.
The eatables were shared among patients based on their needs. In the meantime, rescue teams who were shifting people to safety, brought a snake bite victim. But the panicked doctor and staff could not treat him as the anti-snake venom was stored in the refrigerator in the old building which was almost submerged.
The rescue team had given him an air-filled tube to move through the water. “With no option left, using the tube and mobile torch, I swam through the water to see the refrigerator floating. But thankfully, as the medicines were intact, I picked them up and returned to the new building safely,” he said.
The people stranded in the hospital witnessed water from the Tamirabharani river, about 150 metres away, gushing into the village. Nearby villagers sought refuge in the hospital throughout the day. On Tuesday, with so many mouths to feed - men and women, young and old, Dr. Nithiya and her team climbed atop the building to get the attention of helicopters which were rescuing stranded people in nearby Srivaikuntam railway station.
“Using a green hospital bedsheet, we signaled the helicopters with an SOS message. Knowing it was a hospital, the rescue team threw milk packets and water bottles from the helicopter, but everything got damaged,” said Mr. Esakkimuthu.
But the rescue team came back with bread loaves and milk powders which were used to feed mothers with new-born babies and children.
As the water started receding, they received food and other materials through the relief teams.
Recalling three days of sleepless work, Dr. Nithiya said the six health care workers, to keep them awake and sane, consumed about three to four paracetamol tablets.
“It was a horrific experience to have led a team to save patients and ourselves from the engulfing flood water,” she said.
The efforts of two hospital workers, two staff nurses and a cook saved the lives of about 60 people.
Published - December 28, 2023 09:40 pm IST
