Young mother gives birth inside ambulance in Ilocos Sur

Venus Madarang, 21, a resident of Barangay San Juan in Candon City, Ilocos Sur gives birth inside an ambulance with the help of the personnel of the Bureau of Fire Protection. (Contributed)

CANDON CITY, Ilocos Sur — Firemen here on Wednesday (Sept. 29) helped a young mother give birth inside an ambulance when she could not be immediately admitted to a hospital, authorities said.

Venus Madarang, 21, a resident of Barangay San Juan here said she was expected to give birth on Oct. 11.

But Madarang said she experienced labor pain on Wednesday morning, prompting her partner, Aljohn Gacusan, to search for a hospital.

Gacusan said he could not find one since hospitals in the city were at full capacity, forcing him to seek assistance from the local station of the Bureau of Fire Protection.

“We responded because it was a call of duty,” Maj. Nemesio Valenciano, chief of Cando BFP, told the Inquirer.

Valenciano dispatched a team that included FO1 Emiliano Corpuz, a nurse; FO1 Jake Reotita, a nurse and midwife; and FO1 Argeo Gacutan, an ambulance driver.

The BFP personnel tried but failed to admit Madarang to Candon General Hospital, which was already at full capacity at that time.

While the group was outside the hospital and preparing to find another facility, Reotita noted the crowning and the ruptured bag of water, forcing them to facilitate the baby’s delivery inside the ambulance. They said they also had to borrow some stuff from the hospital.

The delivery encountered a complication after the baby’s umbilical cord was coiled around the neck, prompting the nurse and the midwife to gently slip the cord over the infant’s head.

After the successful delivery, they requested a medical doctor from the hospital to check the newly born baby before transporting them back home.

“To the Candon City Fire Station, we would like to express our full appreciation  for your sacrifice and assistance,” Madarang said.