NewsBite

Darwin family welcomes new baby at Coolalinga United Petrol station

A family’s unscheduled servo stop left them with a lot more than snacks and a full tank. See the heartwarming and unique birth story.

Baby born in family car

It was a quick stop a Humpty Doo family will never forget.

And for United Petrol worker Marufa Muztaba, it will be a routine Wednesday that was anything but the usual.

The after-school rush was made all the more hectic with the unexpected arrival of a baby in the carpark of the Coolalinga petrol station.

St John NT operations manager Craig Garraway said his team responded to the birth and said the incident all occurred very fast.

“A family coming in from Humpty Doo with a 27-year-old female in labour and unfortunately the little baby didn’t want to wait any longer,” he said.

“So they pulled over at the United Servo there while paramedics were responding and our emergency medical call taker talked to the family through the birth of a baby.”

Ms Muztaba said at first she wasn’t sure what was going on.

“There were 10 customers in the line and one person ran in without a shirt and came up to me saying I need water I need water, so I served him first,” she said.

“I think the delivery happened just outside the shop.”

Ms Muztaba wasn’t able to leave her posting inside the store but knew something exciting was happening when emergency services arrived.

Marufa Muztaba was working at the United Servo in Coolalinga when a baby was born in the carpark. Picture: Bethany Griffiths
Marufa Muztaba was working at the United Servo in Coolalinga when a baby was born in the carpark. Picture: Bethany Griffiths

“The police came and the ambulance came I could see them on the camera,” she said.

“Then (the man) came in after 30 minutes and said I’m a god father.

“He said I’m so happy and I thought I’m so happy.”

She said despite the chaos it caused in the afternoon, she was happy to be apart of the very special and unusual birth story.

“This is the most exciting thing to happen,” she said.

“In my opinion I can say it’s a really nice scenario — this surprising incident happened to me for the first time.”

Originally published as Darwin family welcomes new baby at Coolalinga United Petrol station

Add your comment to this story

To join the conversation, please Don't have an account? Register

Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout

Original URL: https://www.thechronicle.com.au/news/northern-territory/darwin-family-welcomes-new-baby-at-coolalinga-united-petrol-station/news-story/bb757778790c2c643b9168fdc461a48a