Dubai: Kenyan assault victim Esther Wanjiru Mwikamba is no longer waging the fight of her life on her own in a coma at Rashid Hospital.
Her sister Lucy has flown into Dubai and is staying by Esther's bedside in the intensive care unit, praying for a miracle to save her oldest sibling.
When the life of a family member is hanging on a thread, Lucy said you hope against hope for the smallest sign that your prayers will be answered.
"The doctors have told me that she's still bleeding and she's not responding to medication or treatment," Lucy told Gulf News in an interview. "Esther's condition is still the same, there are no changes."
Esther has been on life support in the Rashid Hospital trauma centre since she was admitted in the early morning hours of February 18 following a brutal assault by an unknown assailant in a parking lot behind Crowne Plaza on Shaikh Zayed Road.
Diminished brain activity
Doctors have told Lucy that the 26-year-old former sales clerk at a major music store in Dubai is experiencing diminished brain activity.
Dubai police, meanwhile, said that an Emirati man remains in custody while a second man has been released on bail as investigation continues into the incident. A check of the online case file reveals no charges have yet been laid.
Lucy, meanwhile, is attempting to bring her mother Anna to Dubai to visit Esther with the hopes that hearing her mother's voice may help aid the healing process.
Mother Anna remains in Thika, a small industry town lying about 40 kilometres north of Nairobi. "I'm fine, I'm okay, but my mom is not. We need her here," Lucy said. "When my mother talks to Esther, maybe she will wake up, we don't know."
The outpouring of tweets, online postings and phone calls from the Kenyan community in the UAE eager to help ease the burden on the Mwikamba family means a great deal, Lucy said.
"It feels good to see there is so much support for my sister," she said.
In recent days, small groups of up to 20 people have joined in an ongoing vigil of sorts outside Rashid Hospital, offering whatever support they can to Esther.
Kenya Ambassador to the UAE Mohammad Abdi Jillo visited Esther at Rashid Hospital last week along with Kenyan community leaders from the UAE.
After the visit, Jillo told Gulf News that it was "heartbreaking to see her in this condition" and said embassy and consular diplomatic staff are helping the family, including legal assistance as the case moves through the courts.
Jillo said the embassy would work to help process travel papers for mother Anna if needed. "The probability is that the mother doesn't even have a passport, but we can arrange for one as soon as possible," Jillo confirmed.
