Twin girls born 35 miles apart in Batanes

BASCO, Batanes – A 40-year-old woman from the country’s northernmost island-municipality of Itbayat, gave birth to identical twins 35 nautical miles apart last Friday, the 13th.

Adoracion de Sagon, administrative officer of the Batanes General Hospital (BGH), identified the woman as Sofia Manzo Fajardo.

De Sagon told The STAR, Fajardo gave birth to the first baby at the Itbayat District Hospital at about 2 a.m. Friday. While the first birth was normal, efforts by the hospital staff to assist the mother in giving normal birth to the second proved futile as the fetus was in "traverse position" inside the womb.

For lack of trained medical personnel, De Sagon said the fate of Fajardo hanged in the air the whole day, until a light plane owned and operated by Chemtrad Aviation Corp. arrived for a test flight in the afternoon.

The mother and her first baby were flown to this capital town at 5 p.m.

Dr. Epifanio Pagalilauan Jr., BGH director, after observing that the life of Fajardo was threatened, decided to deliver the second child by Caesarian operation at 6 p.m. last Friday.

Pagalilauan said mother and her still unnamed daughters are doing fine. The twins are the Fajardos’ 12th and 13th children.