A US flight attendant has been praised for delivering a premature baby mid-flight.
In January this year, flight attendant Diana Giraldo noticed that one of the passengers aboard the three-hour flight from Colorado to Florida was experiencing contractions. Flight attendants do receive basic medical training, but delivering babies is not included.
However, when 27-year-old Shakeria Martin’s water broke a few weeks before her due date mid-flight, Giraldo had to step up. The drama didn’t stop after the delivery in the plane bathroom though.
“The biggest concern was when the baby came out, she wasn’t moving”, Giraldo told Orlando TV reporters.
“If she’s not breathing, she must have something in her airways, which I’m assuming is amniotic fluid. I’m not a doctor, I’m not any of that, but I’m assuming that that’s what’s going on, it’s blocking her airways”.
Thinking on her feet though, Giraldo started doing light chest compressions while rubbing the baby’s back to stimulate her lungs. The crew also thought to use an oxygen mask and fortunately, she started breathing.
Most airlines do not allow pregnant women to travel after 36 weeks
As a thank you to the flight attendants and crew, Martin called her air-born daughter Jadalyne Sky.
“The whole crew really did a great job”, said Captain Chris Nye. “I transferred controls and flying duties to my First Officer as I coordinated the diversion”.
“Dispatch did a great job as well by suggesting Pensacola Airport [in Florida] and getting a gate and paramedics ready for us. This was a job well done, and I was happy to see everyone working together to successfully deliver a newborn on an aircraft!”
It’s very rare for a baby to be born mid-flight as most airlines stipulate that pregnant women can’t travel beyond the 36-week mark (or 32 weeks if you are pregnant with more than one baby).
Right To Life UK spokesperson, Catherine Robinson, said: “Pregnancy does not always go to plan and premature births can occur at the most inconvenient times. Fortunately for baby Jadalyne, the attendants knew exactly what to do”.
