Toddler suffers second-degree burns from pressure cooker
For five days the hospital contacted every other hospital and just got excuses, that they had no available beds OBAID AL MUGHANNI Grandfather of Sheikha
The screams of a two-year-old Emirati girl who was burnt when a pressure cooker exploded could be heard kilometres away, family and friends said.
Her grandfather, Obaid Al Mughanni, wrapped Sheikha in a towel and rushed to the nearest hospital, in the town of Dibba Al Hosn, Sharjah. But the hospital caring for her and her nanny, who was also badly burnt, did not have a burns unit and only had basic care.
“For five days, the hospital contacted every other hospital in the UAE and just received excuses, mostly that they didn’t have any available beds,” Mr Al Mughanni said.
He appealed to the country’s leadership through social media to have her treated at a hospital equipped to care for her.
An hour after his video was posted on social media, Sheikha and her Ethiopian nanny, Zubaida Abdul Malek, were flown to Sheikh Khalifa Medical City where they stayed for a day before being taken to Mafraq Hospital.
The accident happened 11 days ago at about 2pm as Sheikha’s aunt was preparing iftar for the family.
“When my daughter got up to check on Sheikha in the kitchen, she saw the cover of the pressure cooker detach and steam and boiling water splattering all over the nanny and Sheikha,” Mr Al Mughanni said.
“The water splattered all over Sheikha’s body and face.
The little girl’s screams woke him from his nap and he saw an image he “will never forget”.
“I saw my son [Sheikha’s father] and my daughter carry Sheikha to the sink, frantically trying to keep her under cold running water while she screamed in pain,” Mr Al Mughanni said.
“It looked like Sheikha’s flesh had melted. I can’t forget how she looked.”
Dr Muqdad Al Hammadi, acting deputy chief medical officer of Mafraq Hospital and consultant of plastic and burns surgery, said Sheikha had second-degree burns on 45 per cent of her body.
Children who have burns on more than 10 per cent of their body are considered to be in a critical condition. But Sheikha is stable, Dr Al Hammadi said. She is covered in bandages and doctors expect her to be well enough to leave the hospital in about two weeks, athough recovery could take between three and six months.
Ms Abdul Malek was burnt on her legs and the lower part of her body and is being treated at the same hospital.
Sheikha’s parents are divorced. At the time of the accident, her mother was in Egypt.
“Sheikha is a happy baby who is always cheerful and laughing,” Mr Al Mughanni said.
“Seeing her now, crying in pain and discomfort, is unbearable. Those burns burnt our baby and our hearts.”