Healing Is Slow for Family of ‘Miracle Baby’

In his own loving way, Carmelo Sarabia said his baby daughter is “doing fine.” But Tiffany still gets frightened by sirens from passing ambulances or fire trucks.

“She has this terrified look on her face. We think she’s remembering the night of the tragedy,” said Sarabia.

It has been more than two months since the public last heard of Tiffany, the Orange County miracle baby who was swept from her mother’s arms during a Laguna Beach mudslide and then rescued by a stranger.

On Thursday, Tiffany turned 11 months, and on the surface she seems the same--dark hair, expressive shiny eyes and puffy cheeks.

But she and her family are continuing to struggle. Her mother, Teresa, 42, is healing slowly from the severe bruising she suffered Feb. 23.

Carmelo Sarabia, 40, has not been released by doctors to return to work because they fear a blood clot may have developed in his calf. Meanwhile, medical bills are now nearly $15,000. Other bills, for food and shelter, also are mounting. Rent for their Aliso Viejo home is more than $750 a month.

And the emotional scars have yet to heal.

The good news has been the outpouring of help:

* The Red Cross provided emergency housing for the Sarabias from Feb. 24 through March 14. The agency also has provided clothing, shoes, eyeglasses and household items, said Sarah Shogren, a spokeswoman for the agency.

* William and Mary Catherine Levin, who had been Sarabia’s gardening clients, have established the Sarabia Family Relief Fund. Levin said the fund is at about $5,000. Members of the public may mail contributions to the Sarabia Family Relief Fund, c/o Southern California Bank, 401 Glenneyre St., Laguna Beach, 92651.

* The couple’s older children, Ivonne, 19, and Efrain, 20, are back in school at Irvine Valley College and holding jobs. “We lost everything that night and my friends helped by getting me the books I needed for my classes,” Ivonne said.

Carmelo Sarabia, however, is not doing as well as he would like.

He said he suffers from bouts of depression and pain in his calf, where he was hit by lumber in the mudslide. The once-active head of household who held a full-time job as an assistant at a veterinary clinic and did gardening jobs in his spare time, said he is uncomfortable staying at home.

“The pain is on and off,” he said, rolling up his pant leg to show dozens of black and blue marks. “Today, I’ve hurt a lot. But tomorrow it probably won’t be a problem because it goes away and then it comes back again. When it hurts, it hurts.”

Last week, Carmelo Sarabia passed a series of medical tests, including an ultrasound that doctors needed to determine whether he had a blood clot.

“They told me I didn’t have a clot, but they couldn’t tell me what the pain was from,” he said.

In the meantime, his pain medication has been strengthened. Sarabia’s employer, John Hamil, a veterinarian at Canyon Animal Hospital, said he hopes Sarabia returns to work soon.

Teresa Sarabia says she’s faring well. But Carmelo worries about her.

She is still badly bruised where heavy wooden two-by-fours struck her on her back and legs. Part of a metal fence also tore up her leg, leaving a deep gash that is now a 7-inch curved scar.

She has lost her hearing on her right side, she said, and blames an infection caused by the muck that got in her ear. Doctors have cleaned the ear twice and prescribed antibiotics, but her hearing has not returned.

But the worst part is that she can’t forget the events of that night. Instead of sleeping, she worries for hours that the same disaster will strike her family again.

“I toss around,” she said. “I try to sleep but I can’t. I think of these things.”

Carmelo Sarabia has gone back repeatedly to the spot where their home once stood. It was behind the Bluebell Foundation for Cats on Laguna Canyon Road. His wife, however, has not returned. It is an emotionally sensitive subject for them both.

“One day I sifted through the remains,” Carmelo said. “Not one thing was whole. Everything was busted up or in shreds. Our clothes and the baby’s clothes were tattered. Her crib . . . her crib was in pieces. I saw my baby’s clothes lying in the mud just, just in pieces. . . .”

He wiped tears from his face and looked at his wife.

“He wanted me to go back there to see,” Teresa said. “I couldn’t. I can’t. I was scared. Too scared, it’s very difficult.”