Lynn jakes deliver rare breech baby

LYNN – Lynn firefighters delivered a rare breech baby over the weekend.An emergency telephone call shortly after 9 a.m. Sunday reported a pregnant woman in distress. When the firefighter/emergency medical technicians (EMTs) aboard Engine 3 arrived at the South Street address, followed by paramedics on the Fire Department ambulance and by more emergency medical technicians from Atlantic Ambulance, the baby’s body was visible to the neck.Fire Capt. Joseph Zukas, the department’s director of Emergency Medical Services, credited the firefighters and private ambulance personnel with assuring the safety of both mother and child. Privacy laws prevented Zukas from revealing identities.Others familiar with the situation said the baby was “blue” and could have suffocated were it not for the quick-acting paramedics. Fouled umbilical cords have been known to cause problems for breech babies as well.The paramedics were Lt. Michael McBride and firefighter Steve Harer, assisted by EMTs on Engine 3 ? Lt. Paul Smith and firefighters Chris Carmody and Tim Bartlett. The baby was taken by Fire Department ambulance to North Shore Medical Center in Salem. The mother, whose condition was stable, was transported in the Atlantic ambulance. Both remained at the Birthing Center Monday in good condition. The mother declined an interview.The incident was an anomaly of sorts, given that only 4 percent of all U.S. births are breach babies, and of those, 99 percent are delivered in a hospital setting.”This was very rare,” said Zukas. “The guys did a great job.”Most breech babies are delivered through Caesarean sections. Babies breech n meaning they present with feet or buttocks forward in the birth canal rather than the head n for different reasons. Prematurity is the most common cause.