Police deliver baby girl on Tottenham road
Police officers got more than they bargained for when they pulled a man over for erratic driving this morning, finding his wife giving birth in the front seat with their two sons in the back.
VIC News
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A baby girl who couldn’t wait for her first AFL Grand Final was delivered on the side of the road after police pulled over her parents’ car.
Officers got more than they bargained for when they pulled the ute over for erratic driving on the Geelong Rd at Tottenham, about 12.10am.
Senior Constable Chris Ketes was first on the scene, and is a veteran when it comes to roadside deliveries.
“It was a pretty eventful night, we were just doing some speed measuring up on Geelong Road down near Tutnam and we observed a vehicle that was a bit erratic and thought we better go check this out,” Senior Constable Keats said.
“The vehicle had stopped on its own accord and we were quickly there and thought there was something a bit untoward going on.
“I observed a male driver hop out in a bit of a frantic state waving his arms in the air and looking around trying to figure out where he was.
“I quickly jumped out and ran over to him and he’s yelled out to me that ‘My wife’s giving birth’, so I opened up the front door and I observed his partner legs up in the air and in a bit of pain.
“I just went through the experience six months ago so it was still fresh in my mind.”
Mum Bianca Martinez said she was “trying to be calm” as her husband Fernando talked with officers.
“He got out of the car and stuck his hands out in the air and said, ‘My wife’s having a baby’, and they’re like, ‘What?’,” she said.
“When they saw me basically legs out … they started calling the ambulance.”
Mrs Martinez, from Altona Meadows, was in the front passenger seat as sons Luis, 4, and Dominico, 6, slept in the back.
But the boys woke quickly amid the commotion, with their baby sister born within just 10 minutes.
Mrs Martinez said as she was screaming, one boy tried to help.
“He’s like, “Mummy do you want me to hold your hand?’,” she said.
Little Mia was delivered by her father and police officers, but it was too dark to see whether their newest addition was a boy or girl.
It was only when the ambulance arrived and Mrs Martinez and her daughter were transferred to the lit-up vehicle that paramedics said, “Congratulations, it’s a girl”.
They were taken to the Royal Women’s Hospital, with dad and the boys following behind in the ute.
It’s not the first quick birth for the mother of three, who realised as she was brushing her teeth late on Friday night that what she thought were pains from the baby moving were actually contractions.
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Her two boys were born within just 15 and 20 minutes.
Despite being born on Grand Final Day with the match between Richmond and Greater Western Sydney, Mrs Martinez said her girl would be a Hawks fan, just like the rest of the family.
“She’s the first and only girl in the family,” she said.
“Now we have our little bundle of joy, our little girl, who was a surprise sex-wise as well as delivery.”
No fines will be issued for the erratic driving as Victoria Police say they will definitely accept this excuse.
— with Grace McKinnon