SIRTE, — In a field hospital near Sirte, about 450 km east of the capital Tripoli, medical workers rushed on Saturday to open the rear door of a roaring ambulance, which was just back from the front line.
Swiftly, a man in his early thirties was moved from the ambulance onto a stretcher, which was headed immediately toward a makeshift operation room of the hospital, some 20 km from Sirte. He was gripped by extreme pain, squeezing his eyes shut and appearing not to hear the encouragements from people around him.
«The man is probably not going to have his right foot any more,» one of his companions said.
Reports on Friday said the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) of Libya might soon control Sirte, but the wounded have been continuously sent to the hospital from the front line since Saturday morning.
The shabby hospital seems to be an altered military base. It has a big tent for the lightly injured and only one flat building for those suffering from severe injuries.
A young man who was nervously waiting outside the building while his brother was operated on failed to hold a bottled water handed to him by a doctor.
According to a hospital worker who identified himself as Attiya, one NTC fighter died during Saturday’s clashes in Sirte. In the previous day, 17 people were killed — the largest number since the start of the Sirte battles.
Attiya, a doctor from Misrata, said he has been working voluntarily at the field hospital since Sept. 17. «We have to work 16 hours a day. There are just so many (wounded) fighters,» he said.
Source:Xinhua