Firemen use a ring cutter and saw to free the patient’s swollen finger from the steel ring. — Photograph courtesy of Bomba Sarikei
SARIKEI: Firemen were sought by paramedics of Sarikei Hospital to help remove a steel ring that had got stuck to a patient’s swollen finger.
The 16-year old boy from Sare near here had sought treatment after he was stung last Tuesday evening.
According to the patient, his finger was stung by the spine of a poisonous fish while he was fishing in the river near his longhouse earlier that morning.
He decided to seek treatment in the evening when his finger swelled up and the pain became unbearable, aggravated by the steel ring.
A source from Sarikei Fire and Rescue Services (Bomba) Station said on receiving a call from the hospital around 9.15 pm, they dispatched a team of firemen led by PB Kilok Lampas to find out how they could help.
Upon seeing the problem, the firemen used a ring cutter and saw to saw through the ring and it took them about 20 minutes, the source reported.