Burnt 7-year-old leaves today for overseas treatment

…SHEA, Rotary Club sponsor US$40,000 trip

Seven-year-old Shaniya Atiya Persaud, who is nursing third-degree burns on 97.8 per cent of her body at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), is scheduled to depart Guyana today for treatment in Galveston, Texas.
Persaud’s case was presented to Saving Hands Emergency Aid Inc (SHEA), a charity which began work on transporting her to the United States for emergency lifesaving treatment.
SHEA has secured treatment for Persaud in the Texas hospital which will be delivered free of charge.
However, due to the severity of Persaud’s injuries, the child can only be transported to the hospital via an air ambulance. The air ambulance cost approximately US$40,000.
Half of that sum was provided by SHEA while the other half was acquired by the Rotary Club of Georgetown, which received donations from the public.
The child’s travel documents, which were burnt in the fire, have since been replaced and as such she will depart Guyana today for the United States.
<<<Guyana Times>>> previously reported that Persaud’s face was completely burnt along with most of her body, but surprisingly, the child is conscious and responds to doctors and relatives through the use of her fingers.
The child, who is being described as brave, walked out of her burning North Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara (ECD) home after it was on fire on Sunday last.
The three children – Shaniya along with her nine-year-old and 13-year-old brothers – were left at home alone while their mother went to a wedding nearby. Reports are that there was a power outage and a candle was reportedly lit by the children’s mother which was reportedly left burning.
However, at about 01:00h on the Sunday morning, the children were awoken by intense heat. The two boys reportedly saw flames and quickly ran out of the house.
Shaniya, who was still asleep, reportedly told relatives that she woke up to find her feet on fire. The child told her family members that she was unable to see but walked through the fire and out of the house, into the streets.
After hearing her name being called out, the child reportedly responded, however, by that time, her skin was burnt off.
The child was quickly picked up and rushed to GPHC and remained conscious for the entire ride talking to family members.
Her mother reportedly showed up to the scene of the fire in an intoxicated state. This allegedly led to a family dispute, with several accusing relatives reportedly being banned by the mother from visiting the child at the hospital.