Mirfield pupil helps deliver baby – to woman who didn’t know she was pregnant.

A boy delivered a baby on his way to school – for a mum who didn’t even know she was pregnant.
MODEST HERO Ruwais Khan helped to deliver the baby in Mirfield.MODEST HERO Ruwais Khan helped to deliver the baby in Mirfield.
MODEST HERO Ruwais Khan helped to deliver the baby in Mirfield.

Ruwais Khan, 16, was on his way to Castle Hall Academy when he heard the screams of a woman in labour in Flash Lane, Mirfield.

The youngster, along with a nurse, who also stopped when she saw the drama, leapt into action and baby Lilly popped into the world weighing a whopping 9lbs 2oz.

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New mum Michaela Rhodes, 27, of Dewsbury, went in to labour as she and her husband Alan, 36, were off shopping. Startled by his wife’s screams Alan pulled over and flagged down passers-by to help.

As he dialled 999, school nurse Angela Robinson-Dobbins, 47, of Mirfield, pulled over and started grabbing coats off passers-by to prepare Michaela for the imminent arrival.

With Ruwais on his mobile relaying instructions from the ambulance service and mum-of-two Angela acting as midwife, baby Lilly was born before paramedics could arrive.

Modest hero Ruwais, said: “I just did what anyone else would have done. I still can’t believe it happened.

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“I could just hear a woman screaming and I thought she might be injured. When I got there the man she was with asked me if I had a mobile phone.

“I stayed on the phone and talked the nurse through what the ambulance were telling me. The mum started bleeding heavily when the baby was born so I had to tell the nurse to massage her belly and make sure that the mum and baby were kept warm.

“Everybody was just really happy when she was born. I was feeling quite overwhelmed but looking back I think it’s a good thing that I will know what to do in the future.”

Ruwais, who lives with his mum Naseem Rashid, brother Muhammad, 10, and sister Ammarah, 19, in Ravensthorpe, turned up for school more than half an hour late.

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He said: “When I went up to my head of year I said ‘you’re not going to believe this’.

“She wrote me up a late slip and walked me to my maths class. When I got there the teacher said what a surprise that Ruwais is late again. When I stood at the front of class and told everybody what happened I had a huge round of applause.

“My mum is just so proud that I stayed and helped.”

His head of year Gemma Atkinson said: “That’s the best excuse I’ve ever heard for being late – and I’ve heard some whoppers in my time. Ruwais is a real hero.”

Angela, who has two children Eloise, five, and Cole, four, said: “As a nurse I had a duty of care to stop and help.

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“When I got there the baby’s head was already half out and the mum was quite upset, shouting: ‘I don’t want to die.’ The dad was purely in shock.

“The baby came very quickly but when she was born she wasn’t breathing. I rubbed the baby and had to give her a couple of breaths. It was a relief when she started crying.”

“I’ve never delivered a baby before though I did some training in a maternity unit as we all do.”

Angela praised Ruwais for keeping calm and said: “He was the coolest one there. He was brilliant.”

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Ruwais has been presented with a special award, the Above and Beyond the Call of Duty (ABCD) award.

He was cheered by classmates when he was presented with the award in assembly and head teacher Andy Pugh said the whole school was proud of him.

“I remember when I became a father in my 20s and that was traumatic enough,” he said. “I can’t imagine what it was like for a 16-year-old boy.

“Ruwais is a lovely, bright lad and it’s great he was on hand to help. He is a credit to the school.”

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