New parents looking to track down 'good Samaritan' who helped woman when she went into labour in car park
A couple are trying to track down a “good Samaritan” who helped heavily pregnant Lara Ashton, 28, when she went into labour in a car park.
Ashton, who had started to have cramps, was rushing to the hospital with her partner, Scott, 26, and her mum when she realised the baby girl was going to have to be born in the car.
Her waters broke on a roundabout near Leybourne Lakes Country Park car park in Kent as Karen, Ashton’s mother, was driving along the road.
“Mum pulled into the car park, shot out of the car, took the car seat out and got a towel on the back seat.
"I got in and my partner called the emergency services,” the mum-of-three explained.
“I was on the phone to the ambulance service - I turned around and the baby's head was coming,” her partner said.
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A woman, who had been visiting the nearby park, quickly rushed over to help.
“We believe she was a biology scientist, but some parts are a bit of a blur,” Ashton, who’s a nursery assistant, explained.
“She was reassuring and calm, talking to me to keep my mind busy.
"She spoke to the emergency services over the phone to explain what was happening and followed their instructions to check me and Isabella over.”
Baby Isabella was born within five minutes of them pulling over into the car park.
With this being Ashton’s third baby, she was expecting her labour to be a bit shorter, but not quite as short as it ended up.
“With my eldest, the labour lasted seven hours and with my second child, around five hours.
She added: "It wasn't the comfiest experience, and it also started to rain so we had to wrap her up warm with what we had. Isabella and I ended up in a bundle of towels and blankets.”
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“It's not an experience every Grandma gets. She was amazing. I just went with the flow, as it was all I could do. I didn't panic as I knew that wouldn't help and Isabella had to come first.” Ashton’s mum, 62, weighed in on her unique experience.
Isabella was born weighing 7lb 3oz at 5.15pm.
The lake had an extra special meaning to the Ashton family. The new mum’s dad visited it just before passing away in 2016, making the birth poignant in more ways than one.
The ambulance crew arrived on scene and allowed the new dad to cut the cord before they were taken to Maidstone Hospital, Kent.
“Maidstone birth centre, the ambulance crew and this mystery lady were all very helpful and we cannot be thankful enough for their help,” Ashton said.
The pair are now trying to track down the mystery woman to say thank you for everything she did for them that day.
“We haven't found her yet. We have no idea if she was local or not. It was all so quick so we didn't get the opportunity to thank her enough.
We would like to track this lady down to say a massive thank you and give her a little something to show our appreciation.”
