There was a glimmer of hope that pop diva Brenda Fassie might well be rallying from her coma, her brother said on Saturday morning.
Themba Fassie, speaking from the Sunninghill hospital said the musician and performer, who fell into a coma following an asthma attack on April 26, was breathing on her own and had shown some response to those around her.
On Friday, media reports said doctors had switched off the ventilator which helped keep the local pop diva alive, as there appeared to be little hope.
Fassie’s manager Peter Snyman on Saturday said that the ventilator had to be switched back on at midnight on Friday as the troubled singer had developed a high temperature.
However, Themba Fassie denied this. He said the ventilator had simply been readied as a back-up should it be required and that Fassie was breathing on her own.
He said his sister had responded to some stimuli. ”The whole family was so excited — we called the sisters.”
Fassie said they had been playing the ailing singer tapes in the hospital room for several days now.
He believed that Fassie’s improvement was due to the many people who had been praying for her recovery.
”We have had so many church denominations in here. I believe in the power of prayer.”
Snyman’s message to the singer’s fans on Saturday was: ”Keep on praying — we need a miracle.”
A staff member at Sunninghill hospital said she was unable to comment on Fassie’s current status and would neither deny or confirm conflicting reports about the situation. – Sapa