Bombay's Nanavati Hospital is, at the best of times, a bewildering maze of patients, relatives and medical personnel. Among the patients being cared for at the hospital in northwest Bombay are nine victims of the devastating earthquake that shook Gujarat on Friday, January 26. The tenth has already been successfully treated and discharged.

The earthquake's victims -- who range from the tender age of eight months to 75 years -- are scattered in different wards of the hospital. Most were brought to the city by helicopter.

Thirteen-year-old Neha S Visaria lies on her bed, with her plastered arm held upright by traction. She can barely keep her eyes open; her voice does not rise above a whisper. As I wonder whether to wait or leave, she opens her eyes.

Neha is one of the luckier ones. She is alive to tell her tale. So is her family. She has been evacuated and is receiving medical attention in a hospital. Many citizens of Gujarat have not been as fortunate.

A relative is seen outside a victim's room, looking very tense. His nephew's wife, who is badly injured, is sleeping inside. The calamity claimed her youngest daughter. Life, for the family, will never be the same again.

The most heartrending story is that of eight-month-old Akshay Kothari. His tiny arms are wrapped in plaster; a sense of desolation fills the room. Akshay's aunt takes care of him while his uncle mourns the loss of his brother and sister-in-law. Akshay's father has not been found, his mother died in the catastrophe. Absence of governmental help and the non-existence of support services in the affected area have further compounded their misery.

"They cannot handle such large volumes of patients. We flew down to Bombay at our expense. We brought Akshay against medical advice from the hospital in Ahmedabad because his survival is vital to us. We were sure that just staying there would kill him due to the lack of medical attention."

Sixty-five-year-old Ravji Rita finds the pain in his chest and back intolerable. Though he has not received any serious injuries, he can't stop groaning. He keeps calling out to his son who has not moved from his father's bedside. Ravji is overwhelmed at the losses he has incurred; the thought of starting afresh scares him.

Four more patients are in the hospital's operation theatres.

"My turn will come tomorrow," says 55-year-old S P Gandhi, whose left leg is smashed. Even though his leg is in plaster, he tries to get up when he sees me. "I have no money left," he says. "Whatever is in my pocket is all that I have. Everything in my village, Bachchau, is destroyed."

But, amidst the tragedy, Gandhi remains cheerful. "My photograph has appeared in a newspaper!"

Page design: Dominic Xavier

The Complete Coverage

OTHER SITES WITH INFORMATION
ON THE GUJARAT EARTHQUAKE:
panjokutch.com
kutchinfo.com
ahmedabad.com

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