Write Comment     |     E-Mail To a Friend     |     Facebook     |     Twitter     |     Print

Ernakulam, Aug 18: A pregnant woman’s water broke while she was stranded on the rooftop of her house in Chengamanadu town of Ernakulum district on August 17.

Sajitha Jabil was in the height of despair, as there were no rescuers in sight in one of Kerala’s worst flood affected areas. A few minutes later a naval helicopter came to her rescue.

A doctor was lowered to the roof top to examine the twenty-five year old’s condition. After he gave a go-ahead, Jabil was strapped into a harness and airlifted.

“A pregnant lady with water bag leaking has been airlifted and evacuated to Sanjivani. Doctor was lowered to assess the lady. Operation successful,” Indian Navy had tweeted on Friday.
The chopper flew Jabil to INHS Sanjivani hospital in Kerala’s Kochi, where she delivered a healthy baby boy just 30 minutes after the rescue operation.

The Indian Navy celebrated the news on Twitter. “The young lady and her new born son both are doing fine. God Bless them,” the Navy spokesperson tweeted along with pictures of the beaming mother and the medical staff.

The mission to rescue the woman required exceptional skills as the helicopter pilot had to ensure the chopper remained rock steady for around 30 minutes that it took to airlift the woman. The Navy identified the helicopter pilot as Commodore Vijay Verma of the 321 flight squadron.

On August 18, the Kerala chief minister’s office has issued a red alert. “Red Alert issued for today in 11 districts. Heavy rainfall predicted for the day in all districts except Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam & Kasaragod,” the CMO’s office tweeted.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived Kerala on late Friday evening. He conducted an aerial survey of the flood affected areas on Saturday. The Kerala CMO’s office tweeted, “The Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an assistance of Rs 500 crore. CM had requested an immediate assistance of Rs 2000 crore. We express our thanks to Centre for the assistance.”