US Woman Gives Birth To Baby Boy While Driving On Interstate Highway

A pregnant woman in the United States gave birth to her child while driving to the hospital. The Utah woman’s baby boy, nearly 10 pounds, was born on the side of an interstate highway.

Devi Mariah Ostler got in the car when her labour started on Saturday. However, Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Jalaine Hawkes said that the pain soon became unbearable, and she had to call 911. While Ostler initially sounded calm during her call, she told the dispatcher Brittney Chugg in the middle of her call that her water broke. She said that she was trying to get over into the other lane as she needed to push. “The baby is coming!” she told Chugg after telling her name and describing the car.

The New York Post reports that the 32-year-old pregnant woman then pulled over on the side of Interstate 15. Chugg talked her through the labour as she advised the woman to tilt her seat back, breathe and hold the baby’s head to prevent it being born too fast. Chug said at a news conference on Sunday that they had known that a baby was going to be born on the side of the freeway right away.

Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Josh Carr and Police Chief Jean Loveland rushed to the location. Ostler gave birth to her third child in less than a minute after the officers had arrived. The baby was wrapped in a sweatshirt as he “came right out” in his mother’s hands. Carr described it as a “very satisfying moment” in his career. He said that it was “very emotional.”

According to Ostler, the contractions started when she was taking her 6-year-old son to her mother’s house. However, she had to change her route and drive to the hospital when the contractions did not stop. She decided not to panic as she thought it would not help. She said that she was ready to deliver the baby on her own. As the baby “arrived,” there was nothing much she could do about it, she said.

The name of the baby was not decided as of on Sunday. The mother and the baby are reported to be in good condition.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@IBTimes.com.au