If you think security work is boring, mostly consisting of napping while you wait for your shift to end, think again.
Two security guards, Shawn Hamilton and Tyler Nagel, were confronted with an emergency baby delivery.
On Jan. 9, the two of them were sitting in their office in Norseman Manor, located on 52 Avenue, when someone arrived at their door, telling them that their friend was in labour, and directed them to an apartment.
You can only imagine their surprise when they arrived at the scene where Sandra Drybones, in fact, was halfway through delivering her baby with no midwives or medical professionals on site.
For half a second, Hamilton said that his brain wanted to shut down.
Nagel asked Hamilton if he had ever delivered a baby before to which he replied, “No, but we can’t just leave it there.”
Hamilton said that he had first-aid training but there was nothing that could have prepared him for that situation.
“All that came to my head was the importance of cleanliness in this kind of situation,” he recalled.
Hamilton and Nagel washed their hands, gathered clean towels, and got to work.
Hamilton placed the baby into his hands with the towels and spoke to Drybones to keep her calm.
Five minutes after their arrival on scene, the baby was delivered.
He made sure that the baby was OK and helped Drybones to stay relaxed until EMS arrived. He left the umbilical cord attached.
Anna Drybones was born weighing 5.25 pounds.
She was born prematurely, which is why the birth came as such a surprise.
Hamilton said that Sandra was a champion through the whole ordeal.
“While giving birth, she was having a normal conversation with us between the screams of labour.
“She’s one strong woman.”
Hamilton said that he went into shock afterwards, believing the incident to have just been a dream until he saw the blood on his hands.
Tyler Argue, Risk Control’s vice president of business operations, said that residents of Norseman Manor started realising that security with go beyond their normal roles to help people, which is why they are being contacted by residents like the Drybones’ family.
“As a risk management firm local to Yellowknife, we are extremely proud to celebrate the successes of our team and highlight those positive public interactions where we feel our officers went above and beyond the typical role of security,” he said. “Though most security officers are trained in standard first-aid and CPR, not everyone would be comfortable in this particularly stressful situation.
“We also want to congratulate Sandra Drybones on the birth of her new baby and welcome Anna into the world!”
Drybones was travelling last week and couldn’t be reached for comment prior to publication deadline.