National First Responders Day: 'It all happened so fast': Local residents recall how dispatchers aided baby's birth
Oct. 28—First responders typically arrive during someone's worst moments in life.
But, that isn't always the case. And it certainly wasn't in this instance when three local civilian women helped usher in new life with dispatchers' help.
"It all happened so fast," said Debbie Skaggs, a citizen who helped out. "It was pretty stressful."
Nothing unusual, and then a newborn
For employees at T&T Liberty Safes, it was a normal afternoon in January of this year. Customers didn't overwhelm the employees.
Except that was about to change.
A man walked in, frantic, employees at the store recalled. He then left because no one spoke Spanish.
Debbie Skaggs, an employee of the store, saw the man walking in circles around the parking lot, clearly agitated. The man came back, and gestured as if he had a large, swollen belly.
Skaggs and her colleagues immediately knew what that meant. There was a pregnant woman outside in their parking lot giving birth for anyone to see. Without a doctor around.
Instincts kicked in as Skaggs and her colleagues rushed into the parking lot. She said they all saw the woman on all fours already in labor.
Skaggs raced inside the store and said she grabbed whatever she could find in a hurry — cleaning towels, warm paper towels and anything else needed. Skaggs said her main priority was to prevent the baby from touching the pavement.
The birth was so quick that by the time Skaggs came back, the baby was cooing in his mother's arms.
Debra Van Camp, a T&T Liberty Safe employee, called 911 and recalled how a relaxing dispatcher guided her in assisting with the birth. It was a feat never before done by Van Camp, and not one she imagined she would ever do.
"(We) couldn't believe she was having a baby in our parking lot," Van Camp said.
Instructions relayed by the dispatcher were thankfully very explicit, she added. They were told to not cut the umbilical cord, which the women said they didn't know. The baby should be covered and checked to see it was breathing.
Dispatchers also told Van Camp to keep the mother calm — but, believe it or not, the laboring woman was calm despite laboring for all to see, Van Camp said. There was an unspoken communication between them, which Van Camp believes comes from the shared experiences of womanhood.
"She never even made a sound, which ... is very surprising," Van Camp recalled.
Deanna Turner was the third woman alongside the laboring woman, and said she ensured the newborn didn't fall onto the pavement and instead was wrapped in the blankets provided by Skaggs.
It was only a few minutes after the mom gave birth that first responders arrived and took over.
The women credited first responders for their clear instructions and quick responses to ensure the baby and mother were safe.
"Lots of hair," Van Camp fondly remembers of the child.
The women never learned the names of the frantic man, mother or new baby.
But thanks to dispatchers and other first responders, a baby was brought into this world safe, healthy and happy.
"Everything turned out fine," Skaggs said. "We were very glad to see the first responders get here quickly."
You can reach Ishani Desai at 661-395-7417. You can also follow her at @_ishanidesai on Twitter.
