Martins: the victim

Jethro Ibileke/Benin

Burnt and trauma specialists at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), are battling to save the life of five-year-old Martins Denisson, who suffered severe fire burns as a result of fire outbreak in their residence.

It was learned that the victim’s body surface is over 52 percent burnt because of the impact of the fire which occurred last week in their residence and consumed his elder brother.
He was rescued from what have been described as a mysterious fire incident about a week ago, while the parents were out of the house.
Martins and his brother were said to have been locked in the room of the face-to-face apartment by their father who was said to have rushed out to get something, when the fire incident occurred.
While Martins was lucky to have been rescued alive by neighbours through the window, his elder brother however died in the fire incident.
Meanwhile, Edo state government has appealed to medical doctors handling the case of the five-year-old Martins, to give their best to ensure his survival.

Mr. Taiwo Akerele, the Chief of Staff to Governor Godwin Obaseki, who visited the patient at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), on behalf of the Governor, urged the doctors to do all within their capacity to ensure the boy remains alive.
Akerele who was received by one of the medical doctors handling the boy’s case, Dr. Philip Osho, as well as the child’s mother, Sofia Denisson said the Obaseki-led government, placed high premium on the lives of every citizen.

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He said it was borne out of this that the government decided to offer financial support for the treatment of the burnt victim.
“We must do all to ensure the survival of this child because we don’t know what the future holds for him, who knows if he may be the President of this country,” he said.
While explaining the degree of the burnt, Dr. Osho said the boy’s whole skin in the affected areas were completely gone.
“If you look at the surface of the burnt area, you will see that it is brown, usually if it is pink, it means it is superficial, but this brown one means it is full thickness, the whole skin is gone.
“So, this child needed to be taken to theater, probably three to four times, to remove all the burnt. He however needs lot of blood during the removal, because lot of blood is lost in the process.
“Thereafter, we will look for skin to cover these places, else, the child will be here until the second coming of the lord.”
The doctor however said financial constraint as the major challenge preventing the child from proper medical care, and that  he has missed some dose of the anti-biotic treatment he has been placed on over inability of the parent to get money to buy the drugs.
“As we speak, plan to even change the anti-biotic treatment to a higher one, but the question is, where will the money come from,” he said.
he 36-year-old mother of the victim, Sofia Denisson, who was appreciative of the gesture from Edo government, cried that she does not want to lose the child, as she has already lost one to the fire incident.

It would be recalled that ‎Ijorgbo Street, in Upper Sokponba Road, Ikpobha Okha local government area of the state, was penultimate Sunday thrown into mourning, following an unexplained inferno that razed their residence, killing Martins’ elder brother.

Their mother, a pap seller, was said to have gone to a nearby market to buy corn for the next day’s business and went with their five month-old-girl, leaving the boys in the care of their father when the incident happened.