Midwife breaks speed limit to deliver back-seat baby

Tim, Wiebke and car-born baby Luka. Photo / Doug Sherring

A midwife made a frantic dash to deliver a baby in a car parked on the side of the road.

Tracey Wiles, from the Close to Nature midwives collective, expects she'll get a speeding ticket for the mercy dash to Whenuapai, but says it will be well worth it.

"There're always speed cameras along there so there's probably a ticket coming in the mail."

Muriwai couple Tim and Wiebke Lum had planned to have their second child at North Shore Hospital but baby Luka decided to arrive early.

Wiebke went into labour about 3pm on Tuesday and told her husband to come home from his city office. The couple left Muriwai about 4.30pm but Wiebke's water broke as she was getting into the car.

They only made it as far as Whenuapai before Wiebke told her husband to pull over.

"I couldn't not push any more," she said.

They called Wiles and told her they had parked outside Whenuapai Dairy in Brigham Creek Rd and their baby was coming. As Tim was steeling himself to deliver his son, Wiles thundered along the highway, flashing her lights at heavy traffic in her way.

She got there just in time and Luka was born in the back seat about 5.30pm. He weighed in at 3.3kg.