A Co Louth mother has described how she gave birth to a baby boy in the back of a car as as the winds and rain of Storm Frank swirled around it.
The baby was born at 6.55am last Wednesday in the car park of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital Drogheda.
Elaine Taaffe (26), who was not due to give birth until January 7th, delivered her baby Kai after her father Harry drove her from Dundalk to the hospital.
“Elaine lives around the corner and came over to us in pain after 6am. She told my wife Maria that her labour pains were coming quickly so I jumped out of bed and put Elaine in the car, put the hazard lights on and drove in the wind and rain to Drogheda at 6.30am,” he said.
Ambulance crew
“Just outside Monasterboice, I saw an ambulance in front and flashed my lights at it but it was probably carrying another passenger and didn’t know what was going on. I overtook it and then felt more comfortable knowing there was an ambulance crew behind me, if need be.”
They then arrived at the hospital. “I didn’t even wait for the man at the hospital gates to put up the barrier, I just drove around it and parked up. The baby’s head was just out at the time, so I just ran in to get help,” he said.
“Elaine had three massive labour pains on the way up in the car and on the fourth she gave birth just as the medical staff arrived at 6.55am.
“Elaine was giving birth in the car with the two doors wide open and the wind howling and the rain lashing around us.”
Storm Frank was affecting the whole country at the time.
“People were asking was she going to call the baby Frank on account of him being born in the middle of it,”he said.
“I have to commend the staff because as soon as they knew what was happening, they were straight out and knew exactly what to do. ”
Quick delivery
Ms Taaffe said: “It all happened so quick. I was just concentrating on getting to hospital and trying not to push.
“As soon as I got past the hospital barriers, I had delivered the baby’s head.
“The hospital staff then raced out to deliver the rest of the baby and make sure he was okay. Would you believe I didn’t even notice the wind and the rain until people told me about the storm lashing the car afterwards?”
It was not the first quick delivery Mr Taaffe has experienced.
“My daughter Orla nearly gave birth in the lift at the hospital last year and 21 years ago, my son Shane was born quickly,” he said.
“We left home at 6.20am and just made it to the Louth County Hospital where he was born just 20 minutes later.”