Woman gives birth in LRT train

Light Rail Transit. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — A woman gave birth inside one of the trains of the Light Rail Transit Authority Wednesday morning, its spokesman said.

LRTA’s Hernando Cabrera said Darlin Idio, 35, gave birth to a baby boy around 6:25 a.m. while she was on board a Doroteo Jose-bound train, supposedly on her way to the Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital.

“Sa Baclaran platform pa lang daw nakita na syang nahihirapan maglakad kaya minabuti na nung head of security naming na ipa-assist sya sa isa sa mga guards naming hanggang pumutok na ang panubigan niya bago mag D. Jose,” Cabrera said noting that she was with her husband during that time.

(At the Baclaran platform she was seen having difficulty walking so LRTA’s head security ordered security guards to assist the woman, but her water bag broke before the train could reach D. Jose station.)

Fortunately, Cabrera said, a nurse working for the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. was on the train and she saved the day.

LRT-Line 1 has been making headlines since 2000 for a number of childbirths occurring on the mass transit system’s platforms or inside its moving trains.

Cabrera once joked that the LRT should have been renamed “Labor-Ready Train” but he nonetheless discouraged this as the facility is not designed for childbirth.

“But if this happens, we have to render [emergency] service,” he said, adding that LRT management can’t discriminate against pregnant women passengers who find the transit system as the quickest way to reach hospital.

 Originally posted at 10:01 am | Wednesday, May 22, 2013