CEDAR CITY – During the wee hours of Halloween morning one Enterprise family got a trick and a treat all at once when their healthy baby boy decided to make an early appearance on the side of Hwy 56.
At 5:09 a.m., on Hwy 56 near Bumblebee Rd., Iron County Sheriff’s Deputy Tony Gower said he helped to deliver 7 pound, 19 inch Luke Ronald Dedrick with nothing but a blanket, medical kit and a child’s shoelace to tie the umbilical cord.
William Dedrick said that when his wife went into labor with their third child at around midnight on Oct. 31, they had no idea what was in store for them. He said things started out the same as they had before, but on the way to the hospital from their home in Enterprise, his wife’s water broke while passing through Newcastle.
William Dedrick said he knew they wouldn’t make it to Valley View Medical Center in time, so his aunt who came along to help with the three children they had with them called 911 before they even reached Newcastle. He said dispatch recommended they pull over to the side of the road and wait for an ambulance to arrive when the contractions started to come closer and closer together.
Gower said that when he heard the call go out over the radio, he was already traveling west on Hwy 56 and an ambulance was still another ten minutes behind him. He said he kicked it into high gear and arrived on the scene in minutes grabbing a blanket and a medical kit before racing to the Dedrick’s truck.
“As I was walking up, I set it on the ground by the back door where she was laying across the back seat of that Dodge pickup,” Gower said. “I started looking through my bag to grab a couple of items that I was going to need and when I looked up, it just started – I didn’t have any time to grab anything.”
Britnie Dedrick said she was absolutely petrified, and even though this was her third birth, she had no clue what to expect. Both of her previous births had been induced, and since she started labor in the hospital and had medication to help with the pain, she had never experienced the full extent of labor before.
“He came pretty quick,” she said. “His breathing and everything was good. Everything was normal, like how it would have been in a hospital – except for the umbilical cord, because we had to use my son’s shoelace.”
A father of three, Gower said he had never actually delivered a baby before. He said he had been there with his wife when their children were born, but this experience was a first for him, and from what his colleagues have told him, a first for the department as well.
“It was a neat experience,” he said. “I hope I never have to do it again, but it was a really neat experience.”
The Dedrick’s said that there was no doubt in their minds that baby Luke was a special addition to their family for sure, and that the exciting tale of his birth would be something they would never forget.
“We have the newspaper thing and that’s in his baby book,” William Dedrick said. “So when he asks about when he was born we can say, ‘Well son, you weren’t born in the hospital,” and we can show him that then.”
The Dedrick’s said they have been home since Sunday afternoon, and mommy and baby are a little exhausted from the long adventure, but incredibly happy to be home with their family.
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To protect and serve….and deliver. Great job Dep. Gower.
That will be a AWESOME story to tell when he gets older!!! Way to go Dep. Gower!!
I love reading about the good news, too. Congratulations, Dedrick family.
Good job there, deputy!