Baby born in traffic cop's car
2010-01-28 19:43
Pretoria - A baby girl was born on the front seat of a traffic officer's car as he rushed her mother to Tygerberg Hospital on Thursday.
Traffic services spokesperson Merle Lourens said traffic officer Denver Peregrino spotted a white VW Golf speeding across the intersection of Stellenbosch Arterial Road and Delft Main Road.
He pursued the car and found that the 22-year-old passenger was in extreme pain. She was six months pregnant and in premature labour.
The driver, her sister, told Peregrino that they were rushing to the Tygerberg Hospital after waiting more than an hour for an ambulance.
"Because she was in such terrible pain, the officer transferred the expectant mother and her sister to his Ghost Squad car and rushed them to the hospital. As they entered the gates to the complex, the baby was born on the front seat," Lourens said.
"The officer stopped the car and assisted by clearing the mucus from the baby's nose and mouth so that she could breathe".
Mother and baby were then delivered into the care of the staff at the trauma unit of the hospital.
- SAPA