Code Enforcement Employee Delivers Baby Outside Office
January 24, 2019
PERRIS – Last Wednesday morning, Jan. 16, a code enforcement aide delivered a baby in a van parked outside of the Western Regional Code Enforcement office.
It was cold and rainy as Angie Solis arrived to work. She noticed a van near the front of the building and heard a man call out “My wife is in labor! She’s about to have a baby!”
The man was already on the phone with a Riverside County Fire Department dispatcher, who gave verbal instructions to the father. Solis began supporting the head of an already crowning baby and comforting the mother. At 6:47 a.m., the baby was born into Solis’ hands, who then held the baby until he began to cry before placing the baby on the mother’s chest.
“When I first saw her in labor, I was freaking out and asked my coworkers ‘What do we do?’” said Solis. “After the baby was born, I was overwhelmed with joy for the family. I was blessed to be part of the baby’s debut.”
Solis and other Code Enforcement coworkers quickly covered the mother and newborn in blankets and sweatshirts. Shortly after the birth, an engine arrived from the Riverside County Fire Department. Paramedics took over medical care and support of the mother and baby. An ambulance then arrived and transported the family to a local hospital. Both mother and child are healthy and have since been discharged from the hospital.
Parents, Amanda and Oswaldo Tadeo, expressed gratitude for the help from Solis and the other Code Enforcement employees.
“Thank goodness Angie was there to catch him,” said Amanda Tadeo. “I don’t think I could have done it myself.”
The parents decided to stop at the Code Enforcement building when it was clear this labor was very fast and they didn’t have enough time to get to the hospital. They remembered seeing county vehicles outside of the building and knew they would find help.
“I’m pretty thankful we stopped there,” said Oswaldo Tadeo. “The gentleman at the Code Enforcement Office helped calm me down. If not for them, I would have been stressing out.”
Angie Solis has worked with the Riverside County Code Enforcement Department for 18 years – this is her first baby delivery. Her normal work duties include customer service, which reached an all-time high last Wednesday.
The parents named their son Damian. At birth, Damian was 8 pounds, 12 ounces and 19 inches long.