Two Port Authority Police officers helped deliver a baby Monday morning at the Lincoln Tunnel toll plaza in Hudson County. It was business as usual for one and a first-time experience for the other.
Officer Timothy Jozefczyk was first to arrive on the scene just before 9 a.m. when the panicked driver, and soon to be father of the baby, Nestor Guallpa, told him that his partner was in labor and was bleeding, according to a spokesperson for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
When Jozefczyk arrived by her side, the baby was crowning and he instructed the mother, Maria Marin, to keep pushing. Within three minutes, a healthy baby boy was born, officials said.
“I was so relieved when the baby cried and so happy that everyone is healthy,” Jozefczyk, who hopes to be a dad one day, said.
Shortly after, Port Authority Police Officer Evan Butt arrived and assisted in the delivery of the after birth and the clamping of the umbilical cord before EMTs could arrive and take Marin and the baby to a local hospital.
Kylian Aaron Guallpa Castano was born healthy and happy and weighed in at six pounds and nine ounces.Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Kylian Aaron Guallpa Castano was born healthy and happy and weighed in at six pounds and nine ounces. Guallpa said it was an experience he will never forget.
“We are so happy that we got help from the police,” Guallpa said. “We are so grateful that they were there and that everyone is healthy. Seeing the officers work carefully and knew what they were doing was amazing. They’re our heroes. It was like something out of a movie, and I will never forget this experience.”
With nine years on the job, Jozefczyk said he was very nervous when he showed up on scene as this was his first time holding a newborn and his very first time helping with the delivery of one.
However, for Butt, who has prior experience in the Fire Department of New York and as an EMT, this was his fifth time in assisting in a delivery of a baby, officials sad.
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Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com.