Short Stories: The Great Uhuru

For those of you who have had the pleasure of travelling on the African continent I am sure the word ’Uhuru’ will mean a lot, especially in Tanzania! Literally meaning freedom just about everything from Mt Kilimanjaro (the locals call it Uhuru peak), to the Tazara rail; called the Uhuru Express is named ’UHURU’.

The Uhuru express is where my tale begins, upon arriving to the station in Zambia we were greeted by a huge advertising board with the word ’Uhuru Express-On Time Always On Time’. If I remember correctly the train runs from Zambia through to Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania) it is a three day train trip which runs through Selous Game Reserve (named after the famous elephant hunter Fredrick Courtney Selous) and it departs twice a week.

We arrived at the station, presented our student cards and paid $10 each for 1st class cabins. The train arrived two days late (’on time always on time’).

The first day of the journey was incredible as we travelled through the countryside viewing the game. It was on the second day that the wheels started to fall apart.

We had been warned to take fresh water as it often ran out. Thinking we had 1st class tickets I did not bother about the water. Well the water ran out on the 2nd day and the cockroaches appeared that evening. Comprehending this, it means no water to flush the toilets, washing dishes, drinking and not to even to mention showering (even though there were no shower facilities). A certain Mr Ryan Phelan (mate travelling with me), had a bit of a bender the night before the water ran out. Needless to say, by the following day, Ryan suffering from severe dehydration, looked as if a wolf had eaten him and spat him right out again!

On the final morning we were woken by a groaning noise. Upon inspection, we found that the woman in the cabin next door to us was in Labor (she was on her way to Dar Es Salaam to give birth). There were some complications and a man claiming he used to work in a surgery and drawing from his ’extensive’ expertise, thought the woman should have a cesarean immediately or risk death.

We were quiet well equipped with first aid equipment, but never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that our first aid supplies would be used to perform a cesarean. Nethertheless we offered our resources and assistance.

I could not believe what I was seeing in front of me. With no general or local anesthetic in the most horrendous conditions, an unqualified surgical assistant performed a C-section.

Amazingly everyone survived. Besides exhausting half our medical supplies; the baby was named after one of us, with ’Uhuru’ being its second name!