Wahley born on highway, airlifted to Townsville University Hospital, ready for home

A determined little baby boy, born 16 weeks early on the side of a highway, has defied all odds by tripling his birth weight since his miraculous Mother’s Day arrival.

Tamarah Punch, Wahley Punch-Bolte, and Jakinta Bolte.

A battling bub born on the side of a highway 16 weeks before he was due has punched well above his birth-weight, tripling in size since the arduous Mother’s Day miracle that brought him into the world.

Mum Tamara Punch had been expecting an uneventful pregnancy with bub Wahley Punch-Bolte, but got the shock of her life when her pregnancy began in the hours before Mother’s Day.

“I had pains from when I woke up, but I didn’t think they were contractions,” she said.

“Later that night, the pains were coming every two minutes so I called an ambulance.

“I was taken to Tully Hospital and then I went in the ambulance to have him in Innisfail but five or 10 minutes down the road they had to pull over and I had him the ambulance.”

By the time the tiny, 600g bundle of joy had arrived, the clock had already ticked over to May 12, and a team of hospital staff worked frantically around the clock to hand ventilate the newborn’s struggling lungs.

Townsville University Hospital neonatologist Professor Yoga Kandasamy guided the team via video-link through the fraught moments.

Tamarah Punch and Wahley Punch-Bolte

“He needed manual breathing support and the team in Tully did an amazing job to keep him stable,” Professor Kandasamy said.

Nurse practitioner Barbara Monk and clinical nurse Sarah Currie meanwhile, were cutting a swath through the air in a QAIR relief helicopter to provide on-the-ground support.

“There was fog and our pilot, Sacha Gimenez, did a brilliant job to get us there so quickly and safely,” Ms Monk said.

“Once we landed, around 3am, I was very relieved to see Wahley.

“We put a breathing tube in and some umbilical lines into his belly button to give him fluids.

“Once he was tubed and lined, we gathered him up in our warm incubator, had some photos taken with (parents) Tamarah and Jakinta, and what felt like the whole of Tully Hospital, and brought him back to Townsville.”

Clinical Director of the Aeromedical Neonatal Transport Service Dr Sue Ireland said the miracle birth was a prime example of why the service, and it’s allies across the health service, is so important.

“I’m so proud of the work we do and of our flexibility to send the right team to a retrieval with almost no notice,” Dr Ireland said.

“It all came together that night, the training, our communication with retrieval services and Tully Hospital, and Wahley being here today is testament to that.

“We can’t do what we do without the wonderful work of RSQ, RFDS, CareFlight, and QGAir.”

Although little Punch’s troubles didn’t end there, with a rocky few months full of infections and other complications, the tiny warrior is now looking out the other side, under the watchful eye of his mum and dad.

“It’s had its ups and downs, but we’ve come through staying positive and being patient,” Ms Punch said.

“It was all worth it; he’s come good.”

“It was definitely a miracle,” Mr Bolte said.

“His birth was very tense but at the same time a sense of happiness.”

Bub Whaley and family have since headed back home to Tully after a short stay at Cairns Hospital to make sure everything was alright.

Originally published as Wahley born on highway, airlifted to Townsville University Hospital, ready for home