On Thursday, June 2nd, a nervous husband in Tuckahoe dialed 911 to report that his wife was about to have a baby at home. County Department of Emergency Services Emergency Communications Specialist Matt Hollis answered this call and began to give pre-arrival instructions to the expecting father on how to assist his wife with this imminent child birth. As Hollis coached and comforted the extremely nervous “Dad-To-Be” on how to help his wife, fellow ECS Monique Holowach dispatched Eastchester EMS and the Eastchester Fire Department.
Hollis, no stranger to aiding callers with their at-home child births over the phone, continued to provide instructions and reassurance to the dad as his baby girl made her surprise arrival on the floor of their Tuckahoe apartment. The panicked tone of the call went to the sounds of shared joy and celebration by everyone on scene, and the cries of this tiny little girl brought both smiles and relief to all involved.
This was the third time in about three years that Hollis aided in a successful childbirth over the phone. Hollis, just like all of the other personnel assigned to our Emergency Communications Center, is a certified Emergency Medical Dispatcher (EMD), capable of giving pre-arrival medical emergency instructions for a variety of situations, such as this.
County Executive George Latimer is honored to host Hollis #and congratulate him on another job well done. Hollis will receive his third “Stork Pin” – the award given to EMDs when they assist with a baby’s delivery.
