Cindy Preisel,
pregnant with her third baby,
decided to venture out on a shrimp boat.
While in open waters,
she experienced contractions
that only kept increasing.
She was going into labor.
With no time to get to shore,
the boat captain grabbed paper towels,
a piece of twine,
and boiled a pair of scissors.
With this makeshift
surgical tools in place,
he was ready to help deliver the baby.
Even in a sterile environment
surrounded by medical professionals,
giving birth can be one of the most
painful and wild experiences
a human being can go through.
But the miracle of life doesn't
always stick to a schedule,
and you could end up delivering your baby
in one of these crazy places
we're about to show you.
Nothing like pushing out
a tiny screaming human
in the very place
you're expected to be silent.
This was the case for Dominique Trevino,
who started having contractions
while on a bus
and had to hop off at a Denver library
while another passenger
called an ambulance.
As soon as Trevino walked in,
she had to lie down
as she only had to push twice
before the baby was out.
Although a library is hardly
the best place to give birth,
Trevino did the right thing
by getting off the bus
as it eliminated
the risk of complications
from bumpy roads
and gave her a safer place indoors
to deliver her baby.
Debbie Owen had seven weeks
left in her pregnancy,
so she didn't hesitate to jump on a plane
from the Ivory Coast to London.
But at 10,500 m (34,450 ft),
she felt contractions.
She told the flight attendants
and they checked
for a medical professional on board.
Luckily, a Dutch maternity ward doctor
was a passenger on the flight
and helped Owen deliver her baby.
Even if you think that you can make it
to your destination,
always let the flight crew
know what's going on.
They can help you
by alerting the airport in advance
so its emergency personnel
can be ready in case you go into labor.
Let's face it.
Elevators get stuck.
And isn't it just your luck
that it happened to you
while you're already
having strong contractions.
Like Katie Thacker
of Tacoma, Washington,
who was on her way
to the maternity ward
with three nurses and a midwife
when the hospital elevator got stuck.
Katie delivered her baby between floors,
but she had all the right people
around her to do it safely.
Elevators can be tiny,
so chances are
you won't be able to lie down to push.
Make sure to adopt a squatting position.
This way you’d also
avoid massive blood loss,
and it can shorten the stages of Labor
if you know you're going to be there
for a while.
The subway can be
one of the dirtiest environments
you can give birth in.
So get off at the next stop.
If you think you can't walk,
use the resources around you
like the emergency intercom
that will patch you through
to the train's operator
who can call an ambulance.
This is exactly what Wanda Dueno did
when she was on the New York subway
and suddenly went into labor.
Her healthy baby boy
was delivered on the train,
but he and his mom were quickly
shuttled to a hospital
by paramedics
who had arrived at the scene.
Sonia Marina Nascimento
went to her local post office
in Cambridgeshire, England,
to buy
mobile credit minutes for her cell phone.
Little did she know that she would leave
with a very special delivery.
Her newborn baby daughter.
When Nascimento started labor,
the postman's wife went to get a taxi
to take her to the hospital.
When she came back from hailing the cab,
the baby had already been delivered
and was being weighed
on the parcel scales.
It's important
to let other people help you.
You need to focus on
what your body is doing.
Having someone else call a cab
and wait outside for it
is better than you waiting on the street
while you're in labor.
On a September morning in 2012,
Shawna Arnold went into labor.
On the way to the hospital
with her boyfriend,
she realized the baby was coming
faster than expected.
This forced them
to make a pit stop
in the parking lot of a NASCAR track
in Loudon, New Hampshire.
The soon to be parents
delivered their baby
by themselves in their car.
The new father
then ran to the track's office
for some extra help.
Luckily, the director of operations
for the New Hampshire Motor Speedway
had EMT experience.
Giving birth in the parking lot
of a NASCAR track
might be odd,
but the couple did the right thing
when they pulled over
so the baby wouldn't be born
in the backseat of a speeding vehicle.
On December 26 of 2017,
a woman who was a frequent customer
of a grocery store in Fresno, California,
suddenly went into labor while shopping.
Employees dialed 9-1-1.
After being put on hold
three separate times,
they had to play the part of midwives.
When the delivery was over,
they realized something was wrong.
The umbilical cord was wrapped
around the baby's neck,
but some quick thinking
and a pair of scissors
stopped it from being choked.
The drama wasn't over.
Now the newborn was turning purple.
They wrapped the infant in a sweater
and a blanket
to raise its body temperature,
which saved the baby's life.
Unexpected labor can mean
having to improvise
when the baby is coming.
Do whatever it takes
to deliver the child,
but make sure you get to a hospital
as quickly as you can afterwards.
Erica Davidovich
was pregnant with her fourth child.
After feeling contractions,
she and her husband
used the Uber app
to call for a ride to the hospital.
But 2.5 km (1.5 mi) into the trip,
she went into an active labor.
The driver did the best thing
in a situation like this.
He pulled into a parking lot
where the baby was delivered
in the backseat
in less than 3 minutes
with no complications.
Now you know what to do
if your baby arrives unexpectedly,
but I’d put that burger down.
That can put you
and your baby's health at risk.
How?
We have just the video for you here.