Durban - A newborn baby that was dumped in a stormwater drain in Newlands East has been rescued after emergency workers dug a trench to reach the infant on Monday morning.
Rescuers comprising teams from the SAPS Search and Rescue, eThekwini Fire Department, Metro Police and various ambulance services descended on the area when word got out that a baby was stuck in a stormwater drain at the corner of Herring Circle and Barracuda Rd.
The baby's cries alerted passersby to its location.
The baby, believed to be a girl, was stabilised at the scene and loaded into a medical helicopter and taken to a hospital.
The child is the second baby to have been dumped in the Durban area in the past week.
Last week, a newborn baby was found dumped in a rubbish bin on Bulwer Road and Lytton Avenue in Glenwood.
Paramedics were called out after residents found the infant in a packet.
Despite the efforts of paramedics, the baby died.
A few weeks ago, a Verulam woman, was arrested and charged with attempted murder and ill-treatment of the child after she dumped her baby in a plastic bag on the roadside. She appeared in the Verulam Magistrate's Court and is now out on R1 000 bail.