911 dispatcher helps woman give birth in front seat of car

AZTEC, N.M. — 911 dispatchers are equipped to handle all kinds of situations, from broken bones to buildings on fire, but then there are the situations that are less common – like delivering a baby that couldn’t wait for the hospital.

It was just before 7 p.m. when this 911 call came through to dispatch.

Dispatcher: “9-1-1 what’s the address of the emergency?”

Mother: “I’m on the side of the road, my water just broke, and I am going into labor.”

This emergency was the last call of the day for Jessica Kubishian, the assistant supervisor for San Juan County Communications Authority.

“It was a really long and busy day we were all very, very tired,” she said. “And I was like oh man, I am going to be on this phone for a while.”

But to her surprise, the call turned out to be quick.

Dispatcher: “Are you by yourself?”

Mother: “No, my boyfriend is with me.”

Dispatcher: “Can I talk to him so you can just focus on your breathing?”

Father: “She can’t move, she says.”

Mother: “It’s literally coming, and I can’t stop pushing.”

Kubishian was about to help deliver a baby for the first time, to a mother in the front seat of a car, on a rural road.

“I’ve taken a lot of impeding pregnancies where women’s water had broken, or they are having contractions and their driving to the hospital or at home and they don’t have a ride, but the medics always get there on time, so I never had to go this far with it,” Kubishian said.

Mother: “Oh god it’s coming, oh god it’s coming, I can feel it coming.”

Dispatcher: “OK, take a deep breath, OK.’”

Dispatcher: “Support the baby’s head and shoulders and hold its hips and legs firmly remember it will be slippery so don’t drop it.”

The baby was born in under seven minutes.

“My favorite part of the call was after it was all said and done, they were still waiting on the paramedics and the dad was like, they need to get here now, and he’s holding this slippery baby,” Kubishian said. “I think they had him wrapped up in a jacket and the mom was like it’s OK, they are on their way, and she just delivered a baby in a car and she was the calm one.”

Kubishian added that after the call all the dispatchers clapped and shed tears for that happy moment.