An extraordinary story happened yesterday in Poznań. A young Polish mother in labour did not manage to get to hospital. She had to stop and give birth at a nearby tram stop. A female tram driver saw everything and decided to help.
Fabian came into the world safe and sound
We cut a string from an umbrella and tied the umbilical cord with it, – laughs Dorota, who turned out to be an educated midwife working as a tram driver.
Extreme childbirth
The couple from Czapury (near Poznań) will remember this Thursday morning forever. Around 5am the waters broke. They needed to get to hospital as soon as possible. They jumped into the car and rushed off. Unfortunately, there was a closed railway crossing in their way and when they finally got through, the woman went into labour.
I said pull over and get out, you have to deliver the baby, because I feel his head coming out, – says Paulina Kacperska, the new mum.
The dad stopped at a nearby tram stop in Starołęka, Poznań. As it turned out later, he couldn’t have stopped at a better place.
My colleague noticed a car parked near the terminus and there was something unusual in the driver’s behaviour. She guessed that inside the car there was a woman giving birth,– reports Dorota, the motorist.
She then had to protect the mother and her baby from the cold and somehow tie the umbilical cord. The only suitable thing she found was an umbrella strap.
We were looking for something appropriate, in these field conditions of course, so it was hard to find something clean and strong enough to use, – says Dorota.
Guardian angel
How did she know what to do and remain calm? She admitted later that she is a trained midwife and even though she does not work at a hospital any more, she still has the skills.
The father delivered the baby. The birth was fortunately a smooth one and lasted only 20 minutes. Little Fabian is healthy and happy, so is his mum. Afterwards they were both taken to hospital to check if everything was OK. The boy got the highest rating in the Apgar score.
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