Sne Masuku

Sne Masuku

The now seven-day-old baby girl found inside a plastic bag dumped on a grassy path near a railway line is growing stronger and more beautiful each day.

While the police in Mkuze, northern KwaZulu-Natal, are trying to locate her mother, nurses at Bethesda Hospital in Obonjeni say that she is their daughter until social workers decide what to do if her mother is not found.

Boniswe Msezane, one of the nurses taking turns to feed, bath and hold the baby when she cries, said she is a sweet child and she could not understand why anyone would throw away such a beautiful creature.

"We have all grown so fond of her in just a few days. Especially me because I was the one who removed her umbilical cord," she said.

Msezane said that in between looking after sick toddlers the nurses take turns to feed the baby.

"Everyone wants to help her make it through the day without her biological mother," Msezane said.

"When she is not asleep, she eats a lot and cries a lot, especially at night."

The baby was found on Friday when a man walking along a railway line heard a noise coming from a plastic bag and alerted the police.

Police spokesman Jabulani Mdletshe said the baby was only two hours old when she was found. He appealed for anyone with information to call 035-573-1088.