Crime & Safety

Boston Officer Delivers Baby in Hyde Square

Sgt. Rene Sanchez was assisting at a traffic stop on Friday when a man ran up to him and said his wife was in labor.

Jamaica Plain, MA – It wasn't an ordinary Friday for one Boston police officer, who was unexpectedly called on to help deliver a baby in Hyde Square.

Sgt. Rene Sanchez, a 20-year veteran of the department, was assisting officers on a traffic stop in the area of Centre and Mozart streets around 5:12 p.m. when a man ran over to him and said his wife was in labor, according to police. The man told Sanchez he and his wife were en route to the hospital but realized they would not make it in time.

Sanchez immediately ran to the car and radioed for an ambulance while he prepared to deliver the baby.

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"I just thought back to what they told us during our training in the Academy and kept updating EMS," he said in a Boston Police news release. "I told her, push, push, hold my hand and push."

After the baby girl was delivered, Sanchez noticed the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck and unwrapped it, while updating EMS staff over the radio. Since he was using both hands, he asked the father to press the button on the microphone.

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Police said the baby's first cries were transmitted over the radio to all of the officers in the district.

Boston EMS soon arrived and transported the mother, father and baby girl to the hospital for evaluation; his work not yet finished, Sanchez escorted the ambulance to ensure it arrived safely. 

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