The Mayor of New-Wes-Valley in central Newfoundland is throwing his support behind the town of Gander in their fight to keep obstetrical services in the community.

If the recommendation from the Health Accord is adopted and obstetrical services are centralized in Grand Falls-Windsor, that would mean about a three-hour drive for New-Wes-Valley residents.

Mayor Mike Tiller says that three-hour drive is a “conservative estimate” as it doesn’t factor in things like bad winter weather.

He says rural Newfoundland is fighting to keep its population up, and deciding to remove obstetrics from the area would impact young families thinking about settling down.

Tiller says young people who wish to start a family are not going to be keen on being three hours away from an obstetrics unit.

He says when a baby decides it is going to come, it’s going to come and being so far away could make for a bad situation.