On Wednesday (March 18), the Blue Day shift for Clinton County Central Dispatch had signed in and was ready to start the beginning of their 12 hour day. The shift consisted of Shift Supervisor Curtis Herring, Brandon Clark, Matt Henley and trainee Gloria Leonard.
At 6:55 a.m., a 911 call came into the dispatch center. Shift Supervisor Herring answered a call he probably wasn’t expecting to start his shift with. When he answered the phone, the caller said, “I don’t think I’m going to make it to the hospital. I think my daughter is going to have her baby in the car.” As Herring immediately began gathering the pertinent information and location, the rest of his team worked together and dispatched the call to Clinton County EMS as well as the Rossville Volunteer Ambulance Service. They also coordinated with Tippecanoe County as well. The caller was Westbound on State Rd 26 en route to Lafayette.
Herring asked the caller to pull over but the expectant mother asked her mom to continue to drive towards the hospital. As the call continued, the caller advised that her daughter could feel the baby’s head. Herring instructed the caller she needed to pull over now as she was about to help deliver her grandson or granddaughter. The caller remained calm during the entire call and helped encourage her daughter as she gave birth to a baby boy at 7:08 a.m. in the car. The paramedics arrived approximately two minutes after the birth.
Director Renee Crick spoke to the caller, Kathy Trillingham, this morning. Kathy also spoke to her daughter Brie Trillingham who said we could release their names. Kathy reported both mother and baby are doing well. As Crick congratulated Trillingham on the birth of her new grandson she replied this is her first grandson and first time delivering a baby in the car. Crick said this will be a story for them to tell him as he grows up. Herring said he felt relieved when he was able to hear the baby cry and contributed his training to helping in this situation.