A newborn’s first days, far from home
Thirteen days after giving birth, Nanu Maya fled her home with her newborn and family when floodwaters ravaged their community
NUWAKOT, Nepal – Thirteen days after giving birth to her son – and just one week after undergoing a Caesarean section – 29-year-old Nanu Maya Majhi fled her home with her husband, newborn and three young daughters.
On the morning of 26 August, friends living upstream called to warn them that floodwaters were coming. Neighbours soon arrived to alert the family, concerned for Nanu Maya and her newborn. Then came the roar of the approaching water.
With little time to spare, the family gathered a few belongings and left for higher ground.
Still recovering from surgery, Nanu Maya carried her newborn towards the forest as the family fled. Their house lay just beyond the worst of the flooding, but it was not yet safe to return.
For the next four days, they sheltered in an animal shed in the forest.
Neighbours later took Nanu Maya and her baby to a school sheltering other families displaced by the floods. Her husband and daughters joined them soon afterwards.
By then, Nanu Maya was exhausted. Her baby had also developed a rash across his face.
The school gave the family a safer place to rest after several days away from home.
There, Nanu Maya and other displaced families received hygiene supplies, water-purification materials and tarpaulins provided with UNICEF support – essential items to help them care for their children and manage daily life while displaced.
More recently, Nanu Maya and her son also received a newborn kit from UNICEF, containing warm clothes and other essentials to support both mother and baby in the critical first days after birth. A senior auxiliary nurse midwife also visited them for postnatal care, checking on Nanu Maya’s recovery and her newborn’s health.
Amid the upheaval, Nanu Maya’s attention remained on her newborn son. He was only 13 days old when she first shared her story, and she had not yet chosen a name for him.
For now, mother and baby have a place to recover, with added support to help them stay warm, healthy and cared for while the family waits for the time when they can safely return home.
Nanu Maya’s experience reflects the needs of thousands of families affected by the flash floods, which have impacted an estimated 84,270 people, including 32,021 children, across six districts.
Under the leadership of the Government of Nepal and working with humanitarian partners, UNICEF is delivering support across water, sanitation and hygiene, health, nutrition, education, child protection and psychosocial care.
Around 48,000 people have already been reached with essential WASH supplies, while health support includes the dispatch of medical tents, bed nets and 700 newborn kits to Nuwakot and Rasuwa. UNICEF requires US$17.2 million to sustain and expand this response, restore essential services and support recovery for affected children and families.
