PASIR GUDANG – A housewife and a tailor in Pasir Gudang became unexpected heroes when they helped deliver a baby boy by the roadside during heavy rain, guided only by instinct, compassion and instructions from a Health Ministry officer over the phone.
It was a Sunday afternoon that neither Syarifah Munawwarah Sayed Muhammad, 36, nor M. Bhavani Thevi, 34, will ever forget.
The two women found themselves delivering the baby boy by the roadside near the traffic lights at Taman Dahlia after coming across a heavily pregnant woman in labour.
“I am grateful that I was able to help the baby be born safely,” recalled Syarifah, a housewife.
She admitted it was the first time she had delivered a baby in such circumstances, but the urgency of the moment left no room for hesitation.
As the mother was pushing, the rain began to pour and traffic started to build up.
“Most of those who got out were men. Women might have been hesitant and afraid, especially when they saw so much blood,” Syarifah said.
When the baby was finally born, she worked to keep the mother conscious until the ambulance arrived nearly half an hour later.
Members of the public shielded the woman’s modesty with cloth and umbrellas.
Syarifah, her clothes soaked in blood, sat cross-legged in front of the mother.
“We even tied the umbilical cord with a shoelace to prevent excessive bleeding,” she said, adding that the baby cried immediately upon birth.
Bhavani, a tailor, was travelling with her husband, Y. Yugadevan, when they saw the woman get off a motorcycle and sit by the roadside.
Along with another woman in her 50s, they approached her and realised she was in active labour.
They immediately called for help and received guidance over the phone from a Health Ministry officer on how to assist until the ambulance arrived.
Although she had no medical background, Bhavani joined other women in stepping up as emergency midwives, while her husband and an e-hailing driver gathered cloth and umbrellas from passing motorists.
“I held out my hands to receive the baby because the mother was lying on the tarmac and there was not enough cloth to lay underneath,” she recalled.
The baby boy was delivered safely and both mother and child were later taken to the hospital.
Syarifah and Bhavani have since created a WhatsApp group with others who were present, hoping the bond formed in such extraordinary circumstances will last a lifetime.
“I think the situation was a first-time experience for me and for everyone present, but the sense of responsibility and humanity outweighed any fear at the time.
"It feels so relieving to have helped save the lives of both the mother and baby. I hope to meet them again someday,” Syarifah said.
Bhavani also said that she will never forget everyone who helped the expectant mother.
“This experience is so valuable because I got to meet incredible people. I also hope the mother and baby are in good health,” she added.