Photo By Pamela Kulokas | Baby Mia was born to Sgt. Christian and Leslie Burke in base housing March 10. Joint...... read more read more
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. - March 10 was a stressful morning for Sgt. Christian Burke as it appeared he might have to deliver his and his wife Leslie’s third child by himself in their house in New Hillside on Lewis Main.
Thanks to the quick response from firefighters from Engine 102 and Ladder 101 and emergency medical technicians from Madigan Army Medical Center’s Medic 3 and Station 103, Burke’s daughter Mia was born healthy at approximately 10:10 a.m., weighing 7 pounds, 6 ounces and measuring 19 inches in length — at the family home.
Although there were no complications, the Burke family did not plan to deliver Mia at home. They were sent home from St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma in the wee hours of the morning. Leslie was two days past due. Christian’s father drove the expectant parents while their truck was in the shop.
Exhausted, the Burkes fell down in their beds to nap before the day began for Adrian, age 7, a student at Evergreen Elementary School, and Carol, 2.
Burke, a licensed practical nurse with Madigan’s Alpha Company, was dozing in the couple’s bedroom while his wife went to rest in Adrian’s room until school time.
“Dad — Mom needs help,” Adrian said as he roused his father, who woke to his wife’s labor pains.
“I knew she probably didn’t stub a toe,” Burke said with a laugh.
The sleepless night suddenly gave way to a clear picture as Burke saw his wife’s condition. After calling his father for a ride, Burke realized the delivery was not happening at St. Joseph. Leslie’s contractions were coming closer together and much harder than before.
Burke called Madigan, hoping for help. Staff helped Burke to assess that he needed to call 911 to get Directorate of Emergency Services personnel on the way. Over the phone, DES staff walked Burke through what was happening as the baby’s head was crowning.
“I’m in there with her, and I’ve got towels and trash bags all over — basically trying to catch, clean and hold if I have to, but not wanting to,” Burke said.
Leslie said she had never seen her husband look so scared — sweat pouring down his face. He had no medical equipment on hand, should something go wrong with the delivery.
Just a few minutes after calling for help, paramedics arrived, gloved up and began to help Leslie. Burke said he went to the head of the bed, relieved to help her as a partner, as planned, rather than a baby catcher.
Mia was born after about 10 minutes of pushing, Leslie said.
“I just was worried for baby,” she said. “I didn’t even realize that many people were there. Once I had the baby on my arm, I became a little shy about all the men in the room.”
By then, more than 10 people were present. Two fire trucks and an ambulance were outside; military police and Burke’s parents had also arrived.
“I felt so much relief,” Burke said. “I’ve assisted with babies being born before, but never my own. It’s so terrifying when it’s your wife and your kid.”
The Burkes were transported to Madigan where mother and baby were cared for. A couple days later, the family visited the Madigan EMTs to thank them for everything they did.
“We were in a really bad spot, and they came and basically helped with everything,” Burke said. “We were so grateful.”
Jason Kenney, firefighter/paramedic with Station 103, was on the scene March 10. JBLM is fortunate to have paramedics in both the fire department and the ambulance service, he said, noting the two separate teams work together well.
“Having multiple paramedics and a high level of medical care on scene really allows for being able to provide quality care,” Kenney said.
Kenney said it’s not often that JBLM first responders immediately get to see the positive outcome of their assistance; this makes for a unique day at work.
“Not a lot of people actually get to be there (for a birth) — it can be exciting,” he said. “I was happy for the father because he was deployed when his first two children were born. He finally got to be there when one of his children was born — it just happened to be in his house.”
Burke said he and his wife would have preferred to give birth in a hospital, but all in all, they are just excited for baby number three.
“We just were really grateful and thankful that (first responders) showed up so fast and were so professional,” Burke said. “They came in, they were ready, they made sure everything was safe and helped us deliver Mia into the world. I really appreciate that.”
| Date Taken: | 03.24.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 03.24.2017 17:19 |
| Story ID: | 228026 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WA, US |
| Web Views: | 115 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, First responders help deliver baby Mia in JBLM housing, by Pamela Kulokas, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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