Impaled African student critical

NEW DELHI - The condition of an African student, Adoma, who was seriously injured when iron rods jutting out of a truck pierced his body in a road accident, continued to be critical Wednesday, doctors treating him said.

“He is still very critical but conscious. He is responding to our commands,” Maneesh Singhal, a surgeon at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) trauma centre, told IANS.

“He is yet to speak. We have not started normal food for him,” he added.

Adoma, 22, and Cheick, 22, both IT students, had a major accident when two iron rods pierced their bodies after a collision of their car with an iron-rod carrying truck near Savitri cinema in south Delhi early Monday. Both are citizens of Côte d’Ivoire.

The main artery of Adoma’s right arm, his lungs and the thoracic valve were damaged in the incident.

Cheick, whose leg was injured, is recovering well and will be discharged soon, Singhal added.

M.C. Mishra, head of AIIMS Trauma Centre, said Adoma is still in the intensive care unit and is on a ventilator. “His haemoglobin is low and we are going to give him two more units of blood.”

He has already been given 48 units of blood.

Doctors took four hours to remove the two rods which pierced Adoma’s body by cutting open six of his ribs. A portion of the lungs was also removed.