Cape Town – It was a routine inspection just after the Cape Storm made landfall.
Site C, Taiwan, Khayelitsha residents were accompanied by community leader Noxolo Masilika to check on how badly the communities had been affected by the storm.
Expecting to find flood damage and structural damage due to strong winds, the group was not prepared to find a trail of blood close to one of the dwellings while returning home.
Resident Ziyanda Ngcingi followed the trail and discovered her neighbour, Noncedo Thinga, 32, had given birth inside her flooded home, the umbilical cord still connecting baby and mom.
Thinga had sought shelter in Ngcingi's home as hers was worse affected by the storm than Ngcingi's.
They called an ambulance, but by the time the paramedics had arrived, the community's elders had already severed the cord and baby and mom were doing fine.
The community also thanked photographer Ayanda Ndamane, from ANA Pictures, for helping ferry the makeshift midwives to the scene.
They have also appealed for baby clothing and blankets as well as donations of dry clothing for mom.