Baby Born In Ambulance On Side Of Rt. 35 In Holmdel

HOLMDEL, NJ — If you noticed a Holmdel First Aid Squad ambulance pulled over on the side of Hwy. 35 last Wednesday, it was because a local woman was delivering a baby girl inside, according to Chris Trischitta, chief of the Holmdel First Aid Squad.

Yes, a healthy baby girl was born last Wednesday afternoon on the side of Rt. 35 in Holmdel, in an ambulance that was racing to get the expectant mother to Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank.

But this was one little girl who simply could not wait in time.

Both mom and baby are now doing fine, said Dr. Sagar Patel, the Holmdel-based obstetrician/gynecologist who treated the woman throughout her pregnancy, and was in the ambulance with the mom when she delivered.

"I've delivered more than 1,000 babies and this is the first time I've seen this happen," said Dr. Patel with a laugh. "It's pretty rare. She would have delivered alone on 35 south if she hadn't stopped at my office. It was that quick."

The woman has not been publicly identified. Dr. Patel, who practices right off Holmdel Commons, has been treating her throughout her entire pregnancy. He said she called him last Wednesday afternoon to say that her contractions had started and that she thought she might be in labor.

The woman was alone in her car, driving south.

"She said she was driving to Riverview, which is where she planned on delivering," he said. "I could tell from her voice she sounded very desperate, like she was about to deliver. She said, 'This baby is coming, I feel a strong urge to push!'"

"Because of how she sounded on the phone, I said 'It doesn't sound like you're going to make it.' So I told her to turn into my office parking lot, since she would be driving right past it, and I came down to meet her. I put her in a wheelchair right away. She was fully dilated."

The baby was slightly pre-term, he said, a few weeks before her anticipated due date.

Patel said he immediately called 911 and a Holmdel First Aid Squad ambulance pulled into his parking lot within five minutes.

"I knew we couldn't risk driving to Riverview," he said. "You never know with traffic lights and construction on Rt. 35 how long that will take."

Everyone climbed into the ambulance and they pulled out back onto Rt. 35. But they were not even on the road for two minutes. This baby girl was coming out.

"I shouted at them to pull over on the side of Rt. 35 and she delivered right there," he said. "The EMTs and the first responders were great."

From there, mother and daughter were taken to Riverview, and they are now doing well, said Patel. Holmdel police escorted them to Riverview, and MONOC paramedics provided aid, as well.

Trischitta, chief of the all-volunteer Holmdel First Aid Squad, marveled at the miracle of it all, and how the men and women who volunteer for the squad likely saved that child and woman's life, or at the very least helped provide them a smooth and healthy delivery.

"It was stressful," admitted Trischitta. "But our team is trained for stressful events like these."

Incredibly, this is not the first time a baby has been born in a Holmdel ambulance: Last April, a mom delivered a baby in the back of an ambulance as well, he said.

"This marks our second delivery in 11 months. It's very rare to have a child born outside a hospital, because in our area there are so many hospitals," said Trischitta. "We are so close to hospitals so to have two babies born within one year like this is extremely special."

Trischitta said he would like to contact both moms and invite them to the Holmdel First Aid Squad headquarters on Crawfords Corner Road for coffee and cake some time in April, to celebrate the happy events.

"My intention is to have them both come in April once the other baby turns one, and have cake and coffee and just celebrate that," he said.

The mom delivered in the back of Holmdel First Aid Squad ambulance 1857.

Related: Holmdel Continues To Invest In Its First Aid Squad (Dec. 2019)