Baby Olive will have quite the birth story to tell for the rest of her life. And if she ever wants to see the helpful folks who helped deliver her, she can just visit them at the fire station–again.

British couple Alice Hearle and Josh Beardmore were expecting their second baby last May. Alice had planned a water birth at the Royal Cornwall Hospital and as the due date passed. Then on May 16th her water broke.

Beardmore drove Hearle to the hospital. And they got there on time. But she was still a few days away from her due date and the hospital staff told her they’d induce a birth the next day if necessary. They actually told her to go home and rest until the next day. So Beardmore drove her home.

By 1 pm that day, Hearle was having contractions so close together, she called her midwife. She said,

“Five minutes after I got off the phone with her, I had this secondary water break. I was getting contractions every minute…I couldn’t walk, couldn’t talk.”

The couple decided that no matter what the staff had said, they were going back to the hospital taht day. Beardmore said, “We were in the car and had just got down the road when Alice said, ‘I’ve got to push, the baby’s coming’.”

What is an expectant father to do? Mr. Beardmore knew he wouldn’t make the hospital in time. He could pull over and call 911, but it was doubtful the ambulance would make it in time. So he came up with a brilliant solution.

He knew a nearby boatbuilding site had suffered a fire, and the local department was there responding. So he pulled into the lot. “I waved over at the guys and said, ‘I think I need a bit of a hand here, my Missus is having a baby.’”

Firewomen Rosie Tonkin and Katie Hoskins didn’t miss a beat. Beardmore said, “They were amazing. They dropped everything. The two girls were straight in the car and said, ‘You look after Alice and we’ll deal with the baby.’”

The rest of the fire department supported the effort vigorously. They even moved a truck between the couple’s car and the road to give Hearle and Olive some privacy.

After all the drama getting to the hospital, Hearle said the actual birth was thankfully easy.
“After about three pushes, the baby was out and she cried straight away so I knew she was okay.” The fire crew even thought to note the exact time Olive was born, to tell Hearle later.

Hearle said, “It wasn’t the water birth I had planned but I actually feel really proud and positive about the birth.” So two weeks later, they loaded up Baby Olive and their two-year-old, Teddy, and drove down to the fire station. Hearle explained, “I wanted say thank you to them for being so calm and jumping in like they did.”

The department was overjoyed to greet them. Chief Kath Billing said,

“I am so pleased that Olive arrived safely and I am immensely proud of the crews that helped with her delivery…They are a testament to the service and their profession.”