Premature baby born on Savar roadside after traffic delay dies
Hospital authorities said the baby, born at just 28 weeks of gestation, succumbed to complications from extreme prematurity despite intensive care in the NICU.
The premature baby who was born on a roadside in Savar after severe traffic congestion delayed the family's journey to hospital has died while undergoing treatment.
The infant died at around 7:30am today (4 August) in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Super Medical Hospital Pvt Ltd, where he had been receiving treatment since birth.
Dr Khandakar Akash, medical officer at the hospital's NICU, told The Business Standard that the baby was born at 28 weeks of gestation and weighed about one kilogram.
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"The baby's lungs were not fully developed. We provided life support and all necessary treatment, but he repeatedly stopped breathing. Despite our best efforts, he could not be saved," he said.
The doctor added that babies delivered outside a medical facility often miss critical neonatal support immediately after birth, which can further worsen their condition.
The infant was born on the evening of 2 August after his mother, 32-year-old Mst Rajiya Khatun, went into labour while travelling to the hospital by rickshaw.
According to her husband, garment worker Md Amir Hamza, his wife first called him around noon while he was at work, complaining of abdominal pain. When he requested leave, his line chief refused, and he was only allowed to leave around 5pm after informing higher authorities.
Hamza said severe congestion near Savar Bazar Bus Stand, caused by illegal roadside shops, wrong-way vehicles and traffic mismanagement, brought their journey to a standstill, even though the hospital was only a few minutes away.
Unable to reach the hospital in time, Rajiya gave birth on the roadside before hospital staff arrived with a stretcher and took both mother and child to Super Medical Hospital.
Hospital authorities said the mother remains in stable condition. The family has taken the infant's body to their village for burial.
Sahara Akter Lima, a Jahangirnagar University student, told The Business Standard she found the woman in critical condition on a pavement in Savar, where she gave birth before being taken to hospital. "Many people gathered, but no one came forward to help," she said.
Attempts to contact Denitex Ltd Managing Director Zakaria Taher were unsuccessful as his phone was switched off.
The factory's administration and HR manager, Adil, initially said he was unaware of the incident and would look into it, but did not respond to repeated calls afterwards.
Mohammad Asif Hamza, manager of Super Medical Hospital Pvt Ltd, said the hospital immediately sent a stretcher and staff after learning of the incident and admitted the woman and her newborn for treatment. He said the placenta was still attached when she arrived, and doctors later removed it.
Another hospital manager, Mohammad Humayun Kabir, said traffic congestion had worsened after the Dhaka-Aricha highway was divided by a road divider. He blamed the lack of nearby U-turns, illegal roadside shops, unauthorised parking and wrong-way traffic for severe delays, adding that while the incident was rare, it highlighted the extent of commuters' suffering.
