Overview
- The patient, identified as Linu, succumbed to injuries on Tuesday after being admitted in critical condition following a road accident near Udayamperoor in Ernakulam.
- Three physicians — Dr B. Manoop of Kottayam Medical College and Dr Thomas Peter and Dr Dideeya Thomas of Indira Gandhi Cooperative Hospital — performed an emergency airway on the road using a razor and a plastic straw under mobile-phone light.
- The intervention, akin to a cricothyrotomy, was attempted after severe maxillofacial injuries blocked the victim’s upper airway and basic maneuvers failed.
- Local residents and police assisted at the scene, ambulances transported the victim to Wellcare Hospital in Vyttila, and the emergency team there took over care.
- The effort drew public praise from Leader of the Opposition V. D. Satheesan, the Indian Medical Association, and the Kerala Governor, even as hospital authorities confirmed the fatal outcome and a post-mortem was scheduled.