Friday, 22 January 2010 16:26 | and posted in Features
Have you seen the video footage of five year old Kiki being rescued by Haiti firemen after being trapped in an underground chasm for a week? I saw it the other night on the news and the joy Kiki expressed was incredible. He threw his arms and legs out straight much like a crowd-surfer and the smile on his face was contagious.
His story is a tear-wrencher. He was trapped underneath the rubble for seven days with just his older sister Sabrina and younger brother. Sabrina told Sky News: “My little brother died right next to me and his body started to decay.”
“Before he died he asked me for water. We couldn’t find any water. He asked us for water on Wednesday, on Thursday and Friday. He died of dehydration.”
Amazingly, Sabrina and Kiki survived. They said they survived because, "God held us."
They were reunited with their parents, only to find out that another sibling had died in the earthquake. Apparently, the family has received no aid and are living destitute without food, water or shelter.
Then today I heard about Elisabeth Joassaint, a newborn baby who had been trapped underneath her collapsed house until she was rescued seven days after the earthquake.
Her mother had tried to get to her when the earthquake first hit, but was thwarted by collapsing walls. She had been in mourning all week assuming her daughter was dead.
Elisabeth was trapped in a tiny gap between the collapsed ceiling and her cot. It is a miracle she is still alive and unharmed.
She is only 15 days old today. Half her life has been spent alone under rubble, yet she is still alive.
The Metro story today says this: No one could explain how the newborn endured for so long without hydration and nutrition — other than Mrs Joassaint. “It was the mercy of God,” she said.
Even amongst the tears of suffering, there are tears of joy.