‘I had my baby in my car – police thought it was a crime scene’

A woman who gave birth in her car scared police officers after leaving it at a Toby Carvery looking like a ''crime scene''. Emily Kathleen, 29, lost three litres of blood after delivering her baby on the side of the road.

The mum was on her way to Gloucester Hospital with partner, Jake, 32, when they stopped near a housing estate on the A48 due to “intense” contractions. Dad Jake leapt into action and with the help of midwives on the phone, he delivered their daughter at 1.35am on September 7, 2023.

The couple drove to a nearby Toby Carvery carpark to meet an ambulance when Emily suddenly haemorrhaged. They abandoned the blood-soaked Land Rover and paramedics rushed her to hospital for a blood transfusion.

The new parents quickly explained the situation to police – who had found the car – after they became concerned a ''serious crime” had taken place. Baby Piper, who weighed 7lb 14oz, was lovingly nicknamed ‘Landie’ after the car she was born in and is home doing well.

Emily, owner of High Society Models, from Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, said: “We didn’t even think about the car – we had to leave in a hurry.

“It must have looked like a murder had taken place when the police found. 'The car was covered in so much blood, god knows what they thought at first.

"The police came to hospital to check out our story and make sure it was actually because I'd just had a baby and nothing awful. It's was scary at the time but funny looking back - and she's so perfect."

Mum-of-two Emily, who already had son Roman, six, found out she was expecting their second child in January 2023. After losing a lot of blood in her first labour due to unknown reasons, midwives had a plan in place for her second baby.

They planned give her injections called a PPH bundle before and after the birth, to try and reduce chance of blood loss. At 39 weeks along, Emily started experiencing contractions in the early hours of 6 September 2023.

They hopped in the car and Jake drove them to hospital, but contractions stopped by 9am- so the couple were sent home. At around 1am the following morning, on 7 September, Emily’s waters broke, and she knew the baby was on the way.

“It’s sod’s law the night we go home, the labour kicks in properly," she said. “We live about 50 mins from the hospital, so we knew it was always a risk getting there in time with the distance.

“She was baby number two so they always arrive quickly – I didn’t think it would be that quick.

“We made it about 20 minutes up the road and I knew she was coming. I told Jake to pull over near because I needed to push. I think he thought I was having him on.

“We had to pull over in the pitch black, in the middle of nowhere, and call the midwives. They talked us through everything and Jake was amazing.

“I’ve got a panoramic sun roof so I could see her being born which was an experience I never thought I’d have. I had no pain relief, so it was horrific – but she came out in a matter of minutes.”

Their daughter Piper arrived safely, and she was wrapped up Jake's top. The couple arranged to meet an ambulance at the nearest landmark, a Toby Carvery restaurant, Over, outskirts of Gloucester. After losing a lot of blood during the labour and then walking across the car park, Emily took a “funny turn”.

Paramedics knew instantly she had haemorrhaged and rushed her to Gloucester Hospital for emergency treatment.

“Jake remembers watching my heartbeat go down drastically on the monitor in the back of the ambulance,'' she said. "He held baby Piper to keep her warm. It was really scary but the crew were so calm and reassuring.

“I went to theatre straight away because my placenta was stuck, and they needed to pull it out. Altogether I lost three litres of blood, I was awake throughout on gas and air. I was terrified when they said 'code red' and thought I might die."

While in theatre, police arrived to speak with the couple about their abandoned vehicle in the carpark. Jake’s mum, who does not want to be named, spoke with the officers to help clear-up any concerns about what had happened.

“We were in such a hurry to get to hospital - we forgot all about the car," Emily said. “I can’t imagine what they found.

“Jake’s mum spoke with them and explained what had happened while I was in theatre. They also found my purse with my ID on the dashboard which must have looked really dodgy.

“It’s funny looking back. The car park was quite bad too, they had to hose it down all the blood the following day.”

Emily spent two nights in Gloucester Hospital on the high dependency ward, before she was able to go home.

“The ambulance crew and doctors were all amazing," she said. ''We're grateful to the police for being so thorough too, despite it not being a horrific crime they might have assumed.

“Although it wasn’t the birthing experience I hoped for, they kept us so calm and reassured. We were actually looking at buying of the new build houses near on the estate where she was born, the area is called The Sevens.

“She was 7lb, born 7th September near Sevens – it felt like fate. We’re glad she arrived safely and now we have such a unique story to tell when she’s older.”