Durban - A Durban woman who lost her first baby to listeriosis says she is still struggling to come to terms with her daughter’s death.
26-year-old Lisa Moodley* found she was pregnant in May last year and, although surprised, was elated.
Moodley craved cold meats and very dry foods during her pregnancy. “I consumed a lot of hot dogs, cheese and polony toasted sandwiches. I would chop the viennas or polony and have it with sauce, or on a home-made pizza.
"And it was always a brand that we would buy in our grocery list because those were easy lunch meals,” she said.
She gave birth by emergency Caesarean section in November, but her baby died after just a few days.
Moodley is one of the claimants in the class action lawsuit being brought against Tiger Brands on behalf of the families of the more than 180 people who died, as well as survivors.
The action is being led by attorney Richard Spoor, who has partnered with US firm Marler Clark and will engage the services of other experts in the field.
The source of the outbreak was traced to Tiger Brands’ Enterprise factory in Polokwane.
ALSO READ: #Listeriosis death toll rises to 82
This and their Germiston factory were closed down, and their products recalled.
Earlier this month, Tiger Brands chief executive Lawrence MacDougall said there was no direct link between the deaths and their products.
Moodley said she had joined the class action because she wanted her daughter’s death to mean something.
“I want awareness to be raised about this crisis of such magnitude for all families. I lost birthdays, moments we could have had, a first tooth, walking, riding a bike, school
"If her story can help, then I will do it, because those families deserve justice and I would have wanted someone to tell me what to look out for when I was pregnant. Sadly, I did not fathom how it could have been the one thing we live on - food.”
She first noticed something was wrong when her baby’s movements waned. Her concerns were allayed by her gynaecologist, but two days later she started shivering vigorously. She had a temperature and was sweating, but was also cold.
Again this was brushed off, this time as Braxton Hicks contractions. However, as her symptoms intensified, she was rushed to hospital. “They examined me and realised I was definitely in preterm labour.
"When attempts to stop the delivery failed and the baby’s heart rate dropped, it was decided that she would undergo an emergency Caesarean section.
“As they reeled me into theatre, I had been in such pain and I was so scared, all I kept thinking was that my fiancé wasn’t there, my parents were not there and I was all alone, but I need to be strong for her.
"I kept thinking that I needed to suck it up and be brave because I was about to meet our little princess.
“I felt nothing, everything around me was spinning and I just kept asking everyone in the room, is everything okay? Is she okay? I didn’t hear her cry like I’d expected her to, they didn’t bring her to me like I’d pictured. I was just numb, and slowly blacking out.”
When she came to, she was told her baby was in ICU and breathing through a tube.
“She was perfect, she had thick, black hair, rosy cheeks, red lips and weighed 1.9kg. She looked just like her dad. More like an angel.”
Later she learned that her baby had an infection that needed such strong medication there was a chance it would cause brain damage.
However, the baby’s condition deteriorated until she was brain-dead and on life support.
“My fiancé and I had to make the worst decision of our lives, of whether to take her off life support. At that point I felt that I had failed her; I couldn’t do anything to protect her.” She was told her baby had had listeriosis.
*Not her real name