A Cape Town mother and daughter were both shocked when they found a baby abandoned outside their home.
A member of the Tafelsig West Neighbourhood Watch in Mitchells Plain, 53-year-old Avril Davids, said she was called by Tracey-Lee Adams, 33, who found the little boy of about five-monthsold in the neighbour’s driveway on Sunday afternoon.
Avril said that moments before the child was abandoned, a young woman, who was holding the baby, asked Tracey-Lee for water.
“My daughter, Tracey-Lee was visiting a neighbour in Ararat Street [in Tafelsig] when she noticed two young women walking up and down with a baby in the park,” she explained.
“The two then approached my daughter and asked for water, they threw the water into the baby bottle and when my daughter asked them if they rather wanted lukewarm water, they said they were waiting for their lift,” Avril said.
“Tracy-Lee went back inside to fetch the water and when she came out the ladies were gone. She walked back and heard crying from the corner in the driveway. She then came to call me.”
The grandmother of eight went with her daughter and found the infant hidden under a red baby bag, wrapped in newspaper and a plastic bag.
“She picked the baby up and I contacted the neighbourhood watch and SAPS,” Avril said.
“The police came and said they couldn’t do anything because they needed to contact social services,” Tracey-Lee said.
“The community immediately started to come together, one bought a dummy [pacifier], my mother gave the baby butternut and potato, got clean clothes and Infacare from a neighbour and I sat with ‘Sipho’ feeding him after he was cleaned.”
She added that they looked in the bag and found a birth certificate of someone who was 19 years old.
“We assume it’s the mother, but we leave that in SAPS’ hands.”
“At the moment we’re just thankful we managed to get the baby because at the time he was abandoned, it was raining and ice-cold outside,” Avril added.
She said her heart broke knowing that someone left their child behind.
“I don’t know why people do this, she could’ve asked for help instead of leaving the child there, there are a lot of messed up people in the world, what if one of them found him?”
The baby is currently placed in a safe home.
MEC for Police Oversight and Community Safety, Reagen Allen, commended Avril for her help.
“I am delighted to learn that a young child is safe and out of harm because of our neighbourhood watch,” Allen said.
“Again this shows that our members play a vital role not only where safety is concerned but even when a child is in need.”