First Update - written by Nicholas Kumah, AfriKids Ghana Director Wednesday 8th November

Atingabony and her Mother were full of joy as their dream of going to Kumasi for treatment finally became a reality yesterday afternoon. They waved to us continuously as they moved out of the hospital into the waiting ambulance .They could not believe that after all this suffering Atingabony would finally get the treatment she so desperately needed.

 As I stood there waving, even having worked for AfriKids for many years, I  marvelled at the speed and compassion with which the well-wishers responded to the appeal.  

 

As usual Atingabony could not hold back her big smile.   The nurses had dressed her wounds enabling Atingabony to wear her new dress for the journey, although she still held her fan close at hand to keep herself as cool as possible.

This morning a report came through from the doctors in Kumasi that she arrived safely and has begun the first phase of treatment, with a final promise that she’s going to be just fine

We've made it!

To all of you who have donated to Atingabony's appeal over the last few days, our huge thanks goes out to you. As you will see from the total above we have met our target! Atingabony is already preparing for the road trip south for her operation and we will keep you updated on her progress.

Because of Atingabony's experience, we have decided to set up a fund in her name - The Atingabony Fund. It will pay for an awareness campaign on fire prevention and advise on how to deal with the extraordinary situation, as Atingabony did, of actually catching fire themself. If Atingabony had known that by rolling on the floor immediately to put the fire out, her wounds would have been far less severe. She wants all little girls and boys, mums and dads to know what she didn't ...

Any surplus donations from here on will be chanelled directly into getting the campaign started in Ghana - the team are already designing some fire prevention posters. Our most sincere thanks once again for your donations..

Atingabony is a fourteen year old girl who has an enchanting smile. She is bright and full of hope. Until five months ago she was in her fourth year of primary school and spent her spare time helping on her widowed mother’s farm and around the family home.   In April this year, whilst tending the cooking fire a sudden gust of wind blew through the house and Atingabony's t-shirt caught fire. Her mother was out collecting water, her brother and sister on the farm, she was completely alone and had to bear the excruciating pain of all the skin on her stomach, back and arms burning.

It will cost AfriKids a total of £5,000 to take Atingabony in an ambulance the 800km journey south to Accra where she will have a specialist operation to straighten her arm which has been stuck together with burned skin, add skin grafts to straighten her back and keep her safe in comfortable and sterile conditions until she recovers. In the meantime the funds will also enable us to take food to and monitor her siblings with a view to supporting her mother through a micro financing grant when she returns home.