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March 18, 2008

Now that’s service!

Oh, baby! Seven Points Police Department officials deliver child Sunday

By Rich Flowers

A mother and newborn son are doing well at East Texas Medical Center Athens after Seven Points Police Department personnel participated in an impromptu delivery Sunday afternoon.

“I’m doing great,” Heather Knight said from her hospital room Monday. Her son, 8-pound and 2-ounce Clifford Heath Marrs, is also well.

Seven Points Police Chief Tim Meadows said the excitement began at 5:52 p.m., when a vehicle pulled up at police headquarters with the mother-to-be aboard.

“One of our dispatchers, Valerie Miller, was outside taking a break when a man drove up in a van and said there was a woman in his vehicle who was about to have a baby,” Meadows said.

“I thought we had time to get to the hospital, but as soon as my water broke at the red light in Seven Points, I started pushing,” Knight said.

A second dispatcher, Toni Nichols — who has had EMT training — became aware of the impending birth and began to assist Miller. They uncovered Knight and observed the baby’s head was crowning.

“They were telling me to calm down. The dispatch lady asked how long I had been pushing. When she saw that the baby had crowned she shouted ‘I need help,’” Knight said.

With the birth underway, Miller — along with SPPD Investigator Rodney Henderson and Patrolman Brad Hendricks — assisted in delivering the baby.

The ordeal was complete by 5:59 p.m., Meadows said.

“Everything went fine. It took about seven minutes.”

After the birth, the dispatchers made sure the baby was breathing and wrapped the child to keep him warm. Miller, because of her nurse’s training, was able to complete the post-birth procedures.

At 6:20 p.m., shortly after the birth was completed, paramedics arrived and took the mother and child to ETMC Gun Barrel City. Once they had been checked over, the pair was sent by ambulance to ETMC Athens.

Despite the unusual circumstances of the baby’s arrival, Knight is not expecting a long hospital stay. She expects to be released Wednesday morning.

“We got through it all right. We made it,” Knight said.

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