Singapore — Sometimes, no matter how well you craft your birth plan, your baby, can also decide he or she has a birth plan of their own, and you’ll end up with your plans thrown into the air, as one young mum, who gave birth in the city, in a car, found out.
But we’ll skip to the end of the story and let everyone know that both mother and baby girl are doing fine, thanks to a group of cyclists who stopped mid-ride to extend their help.
Fortunately, one of the cyclists happened to be a doctor.
Madam Mardhiah Abdul Malek’s water broke on Sunday (Sept 5) at around 5:30 in the morning.
At that point, her husband, food delivery rider Muhammad Annur Mohammad, 31, did not feel a heightened sense of urgency, since their two older children made their appearance a day after her water broke, The New Paper (TNP) reports.
And so he called for a vehicle from ride-hailing service Tada to pick up Mdm Mardhiah, 31, and himself from their residence in Marsiling, instead of an ambulance, thinking that they had time to get to KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH).
Except that the expectant mum started giving birth in the back of the car while they were on the expressway, suddenly yelling at her husband that she could no longer “tahan.”
Mr Muhammad endeavoured to remain calm, but when he reached down to help her, he could already feel their baby daughter’s head.
At this point, the vehicle they rode was still speeding to the hospital, although Mr Muhammad knew they would not make it in time. He, therefore, asked the driver to pull over.
He told TNP that he felt “stressed and panicked,” and that when he “switched on the car’s overhead light and realised my hands were full of blood, I knew at that point the baby was halfway out.”
Mr Muhammad then ask the driver to leave the expressway and stop the vehicle, which the driver did so at a bus stop in Upper Thomson Road near Springleaf MRT station.
The driver also tried to help by calling an ambulance and asking for help from passing vehicles.
This was when a group on bikes stopped to render assistance.
The anxious father told TNP that they were concerned as the baby was not crying. But the doctor, who was part of the biking group, examined his newborn daughter’s breathing and other vital signs told the parents their baby was all right.
As soon as the ambulance came, the family was brought to KKH, where the mother and baby were confined. While the little girl showed a low blood count on the day she was born, it has since become normal.
Mr Muhammad told TNP how thankful he was to the driver.
“He went out of his way to get help and did not make a fuss despite the mess that was left behind in his car.”
He went on to say that the driver would not take any extra payment on Sunday, but he left some money in the vehicle anyway.
Mr Jonathan Chua, the general manager of Tada, said that the driver will also be receiving extra money, as he is temporarily out of commission while his car is being cleaned, as well as a token of appreciation.
Tada also very kindly extended a month’s worth of free rides and grocery vouchers to Mr and Mrs Muhammad. /TISG
Read also: Mum tells story of how her baby was born on the expressway