Tag: Storm Gerrit

Stranded mum who nearly gives birth on the A9 during Storm Gerrit thanks emergency staff

A mum stuck on the side of the road following Storm Gerrit flooding said she’ll always be grateful to the emergency responders who rushed her to hospital to give birth to her first child.

Louise Lyon, 31 of Pitlochry, was on the A9 near Ballinluig on December 28 around 11.20 am, and enroute to Perth Royal Infirmary to give birth, alongside partner Stephen Nicol.

However, with Louise in the late stages of labour, flooding forced the road to be closed.

An ambulance crew of Selene Rae, Paramedic, and William Young, Paramedic Team Leader, of Pitlochry, Alistair Daw Paramedic and David Bywater, Lead Consultant Paramedic, both working out of SCAA’s Helimed 76 alongside Pilot Captain Kimball Chillcott, also attended to assist with the road transfer of Louise to Perth Royal Infirmary.

Louise said: “As this was my first baby, my partner and I were both scared that we would not make it to the hospital in time.

“From the moment the ambulance arrived, Selene made me feel so at ease and cared for. My waters had broken and I felt embarrassed and scared but she was calm and made me feel comfortable and got me gas and air to help alleviate the pain.”

Louise and her partner were transported to Perth Royal Infirmary by road ambulance and she gave birth to Olivia at 1305.

She added: “A paramedic from the SCAA air ambulance team stayed in the ambulance with us to support should things develop quickly.

“During the ride to the hospital, they continuously checked me after each contraction and encouraged me to use the gas and air to ensure I didn’t give birth in the ambulance before it was time. They spoke to me the entire time to make me feel comfortable and tried to ease the fear I had.

“Upon arrival at the hospital, they stayed with me during my labour and helped me to welcome my little girl into the world. They made a first-time mum feel very safe and cared for. The care that they provided was above and beyond what I could ever have expected.”

To say thanks, Louise also delivered a card to the crew at Pitlochry to say thanks to all those involved.

She wrote: “Thank you so much for the care you gave me whilst I was in labour. Words can’t express how grateful I am to you. You truly went above and beyond to ensure Olivia was brought into the world safely.”

She said that without the responders, her partner would have had to become a midwife and deliver the baby at the side of the road.

She added:” I cannot put into words how scared I was and from the moment the paramedic stepped out of the ambulance my fear completely slipped away. The two paramedics supported both myself and my partner to ensure we remained calm after what had been a traumatic experience.”

Storm Gerrit: Still some disruption but the worst is over

A meeting of the Scottish Government’s Resilience Room (SGoRR) – chaired by Justice Secretary and Minister for Resilience Angela Constance and attended by a number of Ministers – was held last night to ensure appropriate measures are in place to deal with the impacts of Storm Gerrit.

Met Office yellow warnings for rain, wind and snow were live until midnight across much of Scotland last night and a warning for wind and snow remained in place across Shetland until 06:00am today (Thursday 28 December).

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) have also issued a number of flood alerts and warnings across the country.

Some train services and ferry services were cancelled and a major incident was declared by Police Scotland on the A9 at Dalnaspidal, which is now fully reopened between Inverness and Perth.

Winter weather response plans are in full effect with teams working hard across the transport network to restore services and routes as far as possible – with improvements in weather conditions anticipated today.

The storm has also left some homes across Scotland without power and Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) are working to restore power where it is safe to do so.

Ms Constance said: “Following a combination of rain, wind and snow across the country, I have chaired a meeting of SGoRR to ensure that we’re acting as quickly and safely as possible to mitigate the impacts of Storm Gerrit.

“We know that there are areas across the country where people are without power and SSEN are working to restore this where they can. Due to the strong winds, flooding and snow, it is not always safe for SSEN to access areas for repair. Local resilience partnerships are working to put in place welfare support for individuals who may be without power overnight.

“There have already been a number of disruptions across the transport network. It’s good to see that the incident on the A9 has been cleared and the road has now reopened but people should pass with care.

“Some roads remain closed with operatives working to reopen them as quickly as possible.

“Some railway lines will remain closed tomorrow (Thursday) morning as they require safety inspections within daylight hours. People should be mindful that there will still be areas where surface water continues to cause disruption – so we would urge everyone to plan their journeys in advance, exercise caution on the roads by driving appropriately to the conditions, and follow the latest travel advice at traffic.gov.scot.

“The Scottish Government’s resilience committee will continue to monitor the situation overnight and into Thursday, and keep Ministers fully updated.

“Advice and information for the public is available at Ready.Scot and the Scottish Government will continue to work with all relevant agencies to closely monitor the storm and its impacts and ensure support is provided to those affected.”

Joanne Maguire Scotrail’s Chief Operating Officer said: “ScotRail and Network Rail teams have been working flat out to keep people moving where possible, but we have faced extreme conditions in different parts of the country which has resulted in significant disruption. The safety of our staff and passengers is our top priority.

“We will be working overnight and early in the morning to inspect the railway and restore services, but disruption is expected to continue into Thursday. Our advice to passengers is to check before travelling via the ScotRail website or app.”