Feb. 11 (UPI) -- Authorities in South Africa rescued a newborn baby that had been trapped in a storm drain for several hours Monday afternoon.
The newborn girl, whom doctors believe is no more than 3 days old, was diagnosed with mild hypothermia at a local hospital after she was freed from the drain in the city of Durban.
Hospital staff declared her survival a "miracle," as she was discovered after passersby heard the faint sounds of her crying. People used their cupboard doors to form makeshift barriers to hold back dirt around rescuers as they worked to free the infant.
"The main problem was that she was very cold," Timothy Hardcastle, a doctor at Chief Albert Luthuli Hospital, told News 24. "We warmed her up and washed off dust and cleaned her abrasions. Our colleagues from pediatrics came down and brought through basic medications."
Hardcastle said the girl was in the pipe for at least 5 hours but was in "good health."
"She has been awake, responsive and crying. Her glucose and sugar levels are good. She is stable enough for a transfer to base hospital so the social aspect can be sorted," he said.
No information was immediately known about the infant's parents or how the she got into the storm drain .
