Mum has a baby girl – at the side of the A470
AMOTHER has spoken of the moment she gave birth to her baby daughter in a car on the side of one of Wales’ busiest dual carriageways – at 3am on St David’s Day.
Genna Field, 32, and her partner Richard Bevan were being driven to hospital in her mother Alison’s grey Golf GTi when she realised the baby was on its way – immediately.
The only thing for it was for Alison to pull over on to the hard shoulder of the A470 so they could help Genna give birth.
Richard, 41, said: “The baby wasn’t due for another 17 days, but Genna started having pains on Saturday night. We called her mum Alison to come down and we decided to go to hospital.
“We had just gone past the Abercynon roundabout when the contractions were coming every three minutes, then it was every two, and then Genna grabbed my arm and said the baby was coming.
“Alison pulled over and I leaned over the seat and the baby came almost immediately.”
Richard got out of the back seat, raced round to the front and called 999.
“Genna was going into shock,” he said. “The cord was still attached so I took the shoelaces out of my trainers and tied them around it. That was the advice from the call handler and I had seen it before in a video, so I knew what to do.”
But their new baby daughter, who was being held by Alison, was lifeless and Richard needed to get help as quickly as possible.
“My mother-in-law was tapping the baby and then her arm started moving but we needed to get them both to hospital as soon as possible,” he said. “I saw a car travelling on the opposite direction and flagged it down.
“I couldn’t believe my luck when it turned out to be a police car. They went down to the roundabout and came up to us. They were amazing and realised they needed to get us to hospital as quickly as possible.”
The family were taken in the police car to Prince Charles Hospital in Merthyr Tydfil.
The officers had messaged ahead so hospital staff were waiting outside for Genna, from Mountain Ash, and the baby to arrive.
“They were all amazing,” said Richard. “They took Genna and the baby straight off and made sure everything was alright. We have been so blessed that everyone acted so quickly.”
Mum and baby, who hasn’t yet been named, are now being looked after at the hospital, but are both doing really well.
Genna, who is also mum to Jay, 14, and Honey, two, says the whole thing has been a blur.
“It has been crazy. It was all so fast. I am just so grateful to everyone who helped us. She is doing really well and was a healthy 6lb 11oz. She has been feeding really well, but they are just going to keep us in for a couple of days to keep an eye on us.”
The police officers who helped Genna and Richard said they were delighted to be able to help.