West Newton family thanks Westmoreland dispatcher for emergency 'delivery'

Russ Mitchell said Wednesday that he was not looking forward to listening to 18 minutes of the “most stressful time in my life” delivering his 6-pound, 2-ounce daughter on April 27 along the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Penn Township.

Mitchell, of West Newton, said he was eager to meet the Westmoreland County dispatcher Jonathan Caccia, who guided him through “that crazy night” when he helped his wife, Dawn, deliver Emmi in the front passenger seat of a 2016 Jeep Cherokee. The baby was delivered in a pull-off area near the Harrison City maintenance shed.

“Don’t get me wrong, I really wanted to meet Jonathan and thank him for all he did. But that was just so stressful and having to relive all that I wasn’t too sure, but Dawn wanted to listen to the tape,” Mitchell said.

Caccia, an 11-year-veteran dispatcher, was awarded with a commendation by public safety director Roland “Bud” Mertz, plus a pink stork pin when he met the family at the dispatch center.

“It was pretty awesome seeing Jonathan hold Emmi when they met, and the whole room here glowed. Jonathan brought along the two youngest of his three children to meet the Mitchell family so it was a lot of fun,” Mertz said.

Emmi was dressed for the occasion in a colorful onesie with the “63.4” milepost emblazoned across her top.

“Listening to the tape that night, Jonathan did a terrific job and followed a very intense, emergency protocol in a steady, calming voice,” Mertz said.

Dawn Mitchell concurred.

“We’re so grateful for his help, and it was really great to finally meet him. We never thought something like that would happen to us,” she said.

Russ Mitchell then relived the unforgettable trip. He said the family called his mother to come to their home to watch their two-year-old daughter, Charli, when contractions started about 11 p.m. April 27. The baby was supposed to be delivered at Forbes Regional Hospital in Monroeville.

“When mom pulled in to watch Charli, we immediately pulled out of the driveway and headed towards Forbes Regional in Monroeville because Dawn’s contractions were becoming shorter and shorter,” Mitchell said.

“We were on the turnpike and the contractions really escalated … I kept thinking, ‘What should I do?’, ‘What should I do?’, and called 911 on the speaker phone as we drove west,” he said.

Mitchell said Caccia assured him that an ambulance was dispatched once they pulled over.

“It was like something you see in a movie. A dark, cold, rainy night and all we had in the car were a couple of sweatshirts in the backseat,” Mitchell said.

“Jonathan directed me to lay her seat back completely flat, so we had to take out the car seat behind her. I still didn’t think I’d be delivering a baby before the ambulance arrived,” he said.

Mitchell said there was another “big contraction” and Caccia asked him if he saw the baby’s head.

“I thought, ‘What?’ But you can’t stop it from happening, so I looked and everything from the neck up was out, and then there was another big contraction and she pushed and the rest came out … the cord was wrapped around Emmi’s neck,” Mitchell said. “It happened so quick and Emmi was all wet and slippery, but she still had the cord wrapped around her neck.”

Mitchell said he unwrapped the cord from her neck.

“She hadn’t cried yet or anything yet and it was so dark, so I smacked her a little on her back because I was worried her airway might be blocked,” Mitchell said.

Emmi made a noise, and Mitchell said he was relieved for a moment.

Caccia then directed Mitchell to cut his shoelace so he could tie the cord about six inches from (Emmi’s) belly button after three minutes. Mitchell said he followed the directive.

“Then he asked me to check on Dawn’s condition and it hit me again that not only did I have to monitor and deliver Emmi, but had to make sure my wife was OK, too. My fear just doubled,” he said.

Mitchell said the experience seemed “like forever” but it took the ambulance only eight minutes to arrive at the scene and transport baby and mother to the hospital.

“We were really lucky — and thankful Jonathan helped us,” Mitchell said.

According to Mertz, the baby delivery was the first this year. In 2018, county dispatchers assisted three families with delivering newborns.