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Doctors fight to save victims’ lives
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SPECIALIST medical teams at two Shanghai hospitals yesterday raced against the clock to save the lives of seven of the people injured in the Kunshan explosion.
The causalities — five women and two men — had suffered burns covering between 75 and 97 percent of their bodies.
The first of the six people to arrive at Changhai Hospital was Xu Tao, a 28-year-old man suffering from burns to almost 95 percent of his body.
Ben Daofeng, director of the hospital’s burns unit, said later that Xu had received emergency treatment, but that his condition was unstable.
“Burns patients are very likely to suffer from shock, infection and associated diseases, all of which could threaten their lives,” Ben said.
Five more patients, all women between 25 and 42 years, arrived at Changhai about 4:15pm.
Zhang Huiqin from southwest China’s Yunnan Province had the most severe burns, affecting 97 percent of her body.
The 25-year-old went to work at the factory about 6:10am, said her elder sister Zhang Huiping, who traveled with her in the ambulance.
Li Ronggui, Zhang Huiping’s husband, said he was awoken by a loud bang and a tremor about 7:30am.
“At first I thought it was an earthquake,” Li told Shanghai Daily.
The couple lives about 1 kilometer from the factory.
Soon after 7:30am, Li said he got a call from a friend telling him the factory was on fire. The couple raced to the plant to check on Zhang Huiqin.
“I’ve never been more afraid in my life,” Li said. “All I did on the way was pray she was OK.”
At the factory, Li and Zhang were confronted with the sight of dozens of people lying on the ground, all horribly burnt.
The couple tried to look for their sister, but were told to move back as police cordoned off the area.
“We could do nothing but wait. It was torture,” Li said.
Zhang Huiqin worked 12 hours a day at the plant for 4,000 (US$650) to 5,000 yuan a month, and got just one day off a month, Li said, adding that he has yet to tell her husband, parents or 3-year-old son, who all live in Yunnan.
Another woman being treated at Changhai is Gu Lianyun, whose son said he found out about the blast only when she failed to answer her cellphone.
Another relative of a victim said he rushed to hospital after her son saw the news online.
At Ruijin Hospital, Lu Yunjia, a 29-year-old man, arrived about 1:50pm. Lu had also suffered burns to 95 percent of his body.
Chen Erzhen, the hospital’s vice president, said doctors had cleaned Lu’s wounds and performed a tracheotomy to help him breathe. Though his vital signs were stable, the situation was serious, he said.
“Lu is strong, but there are signs he might have internal injuries,” Chen said.
The young man is being closely monitored in the intensive care unit, he said.
“We will carry out more tests later to see if Lu has any lung or intestinal problems. But it could take up to three months for him to recover,” he said.
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