Steve Hyde, the Gatwick Baby |
So Steve started his search. He went first to the items his parents had kept for him: the clothes he was found in, the press cuttings and the written testimonials of the people he encountered at Gatwick. Their words, preserved under cellophane in a photograph album, bear witness to the extraordinary effect a helpless, motherless baby has on the adults he or she comes into contact with. One of the policemen at the scene describes how 'when all the fuss had died down, Gary was fed by Sergeant Ahmed Ramiz, who had bought the milk himself'. Ahmed, the account continues, had three young sons of his own: he asked to be allowed to take the baby home with him that evening, if no foster parents could be found. Janice Stone, the social worker called in, remembers 'wrapping the baby in my scarf, because it was so cold'. And Tricia Stamer, the airport public relations staff member, describes how 'because his romper suit was wet, we dipped into the department's tea money to buy him a new one'.