By Stephen Appezzato
LITTLE SILVER – Borough EMS and police department members were honored Feb. 26 for successfully navigating an unusual emergency call.
On the morning of Dec. 6, police and EMS were dispatched to a reported “imminent childbirth” inside a car on Winding Way. Within two minutes officers and EMS members arrived at the scene, navigating road closures and traffic delays.
Facing freezing temperatures and the looming arrival of a baby, “a plan was devised to rapidly carry the soon-to-be mother from the front seat of the pickup truck to the ambulance in between contractions and prepare to deliver the baby on scene,” a borough resolution read.
Within the hour a healthy baby boy named Casey was delivered in the rear of an ambulance by EMS responders.
Lauren Guaragno, Casey’s mother, described the moment as a “surreal experience.”
“Everything was happening so fast, and I think that it was all meant to be the way that it worked out,” Guaragno said. “They showed up just in the nick of time and, to this day, I just think so many things had to happen the way that they did for them to get there in time.”
“There was one EMT who was saying, if they would have done something different that morning, they wouldn’t have made it in time, and it’s just crazy how everything just really worked out for us,” Guaragno reflected.
“The longer that I do this, the more in awe I am of what you guys around this room do,” said Mayor Robert Neff, speaking to the men and women who make up Little Silver’s emergency response and police departments.
“It’s a really happy occasion,” Neff said. “Thankfully, this particular call that we’re here for tonight had an extraordinarily happy ending. We’ve got a new little human being on the face of the planet as a result of everybody’s hard work,” he said.
Council member and former EMS chief Chris Faherty, who was on the scene, also spoke at the commendation ceremony.
“I think we should be proudest of (the) mom,” Faherty said. “We just helped and she did the hard work.”
Faherty expressed how proud he was of his fellow emergency responders.
“Lastly, I just want to share with (the) mom and dad that, hopefully, when this little guy gets older, he realizes that he’s got 16 friends that are there to support him no matter what,” Faherty added.
The resolution presented Feb. 26 formally commended all involved, including Faherty; EMS Chief Thomas Lloyd and Sgt. Anthony Zajac; EMTs Michael Very, Thomas Smith, May Truxal, Elaina Caldera and Kathryn Grabowy; EMRs Donald Niles, Rachel Rennert and Robert Duncan; and police officers. Lt. Gregory Oliva, Officer Stephen Scherer, Officer Tyler Wilton and Officer Andrew White. The formal honor read, in part, that, “Due to the exceptional training, years of experience, and dedication of Little Silver EMS and Police, an out-of-the-ordinary situation was managed with skill, compassion, and care.”
“We’re just so happy that they were recognized for the work that they did, and obviously we’re forever grateful to them,” Guaragno said.
The article originally appeared in the February 29 –March 6, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
