The volunteer members of Bay Roberts Fire Rescue are used to getting called out to all kinds of situations – not all of them with happy endings – but a call for service they received last month, still has them smiling.

Fire Chief Michael Murphy says his members were called to a medical call by EMS paramedics just before 2:00 on the morning of Wednesday, January 14th.

A 22-year-old woman was in labour and paramedics called in the local fire department to assist because the labour was progressing quickly.

Chief Murphy says the responding crew members Adam Russell, Cole MacDougall, Roy Mercer, Dean Franey, and Andrew Dawe provided “calm, professional care” to the young mother, and at 2:19 Wyatt Jonathan Nicholas Snow was safely delivered by paramedics Chelsea Bradbury and Jennifer Earle who are also members of the fire department.

A second EMS crew including Toni Noseworthy, Hiram Snow, and Kyle Riddle Ellsworth were also on the scene to provide assistance.

He says it was the fire department’s first birth in their more than 80 year history, and he’s very proud of his members for playing a part.

The members involved were presented with stork pins in a ceremony at the fire hall last night that was attended by Wyatt, his mom and other family members.

“We gave baby Wyatt a little care package that members put together for him” including “pampers, formula, some bottles, and we gave him a toy ladder truck with Bay Roberts Fire Rescue on the doors – the actual logo.”

He says stork pins are usually presented to EMS members, but the honour was extended to the fire fighters for playing a part in the delivery.

“It’s a pin that you wear on your uniform, actually it’s a blue stork pin…and in the EMS world that signifies that you helped out in the delivery of a baby in the field.”

Captain Murphy calls it a great example of how EMS and fire fighters support each other in the field, and he’s proud to say Bay Roberts Fire Rescue has a new little buddy for life.