Transcript: Sarah Paino's miracle baby
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MELISSA DOYLE: We begin with a story of devastating tragedy and uplifting triumph. Hundreds die on our roads every year, but there was something about a crash last month involving a stolen car and another car being driven by a young pregnant mum that stunned the nation. It was at once a senseless waste of a beautiful life and the most extraordinary battle to summon another one into the world. You're about to see how fate can rest in simple, everyday decisions and how seconds and incredible dedication saved a little unborn baby.
(ON CAR RADIO)
The voice inside my head
I miss you, miss you,
miss you... #
(LOUD CRASH, GLASS SHATTERS)
JIM: Banjo? Banjo?
DANIEL STIRLING: I saw a couple of police officers at the front doors of Banjo's waving their torches at me. So I thought I'd better go down and check what's up. They just said, "Are you Daniel Stirling?" "Yeah, mate." They said to me, "We've got some bad news. "Your partner, Sarah, has died in a car accident." My body just went numb. And I said, "She's pregnant. She's pregnant."
MELISSA DOYLE: Hobart in the wee small hours of a weekday is a pretty sleepy place. The streets are quiet and the dangers on the road, you'd have to think, are pretty low. But not this night - Friday, 22 January this year.
JACQUELIN ROBSON: Police were doing their normal routine checks, or patrols. They noticed a car around the Mornington roundabout driving erratically.
MELISSA DOYLE: Driving erratically and speeding. Police believe the car was stolen and the two 15-year-old boys and two girls aged 15 and 12 were on board. As it races on into the night, across town, a young family is making decisions that will be among their last. Daniel Stirling is a baker's apprentice. The loves of his life are partner Sarah and their little son, Jordan. Daniel had pulled a night shift at the bakery. He'd thought the punishing overnight hours were behind him.
DANIEL STIRLING: I'd finished up doing that probably two months beforehand because it was getting harder for me to get in there, get a lift. But that fell through, and Sarah's offered to take me that night and, um...yeah. She should have been in bed. Yeah. Should have been in bed.
MELISSA DOYLE: At 12:30am, the whole family piled into their car to take Daniel to work, Sarah at the wheel, Daniel by her side and a sleepy Jordan in the backseat… Do you remember the drive in? Were you...talkative? Was she talkative?
DANIEL STIRLING: She was tired, you know, 'cause she was seven months through her pregnancy, eight months. Still had a chat the whole way. Her happy self.
MELISSA DOYLE: It was a 20-minute drive from the northern suburbs to Banjo's Bakery on Hobart's waterfront.
(SIREN WAILS, TYRES SQUEAL)
MELISSA DOYLE: It was at 12:56 that police first encountered the stolen car.
JACQUELIN ROBSON: They attempted to intercept the car. It failed to stop, so they monitored the car from a distance with the no-pursuit policy.
MELISSA DOYLE: The stolen car continued on its fateful path towards the city...as Sarah, Daniel and Jordan pulled up at the bakery. They said their goodbyes and Sarah drove off with Jordan still sound asleep in the back. Around the same time, police say the tearaway car was doing at least 120km/h across Hobart's ghostly quiet Tasman Bridge.
JACQUELIN ROBSON Quite fast over a bridge that has a 70km/h speed limit, and then once you come into town, it slows down to 60 and then even 50 - so, more than double the speed limit.
MELISSA DOYLE: Purely by chance, at this time, Sarah left Banjo's and drove towards this intersection on Hobart's waterfront. It's less than a kilometer from the bakery, and with no traffic, it would have taken her two minutes. If she'd said goodbye to Daniel a split second earlier or later, she would have escaped what happened next.
(CAR RADIO PLAYS)
DANIEL STIRLING: It crushes me. I'm never gonna get to hear her voice again. Smile. Nothing.
(LOUD CRASH, GLASS SHATTERS)
DANIEL STIRLING: If anything was to bring her back, yeah, I'd swap anything in this world. Anything. Yeah.
KEITH MACQUEEN: The initial details was a motor vehicle accident involving two cars, an unconscious patient still trapped, and there was also a car fire.
MELISSA DOYLE: By chance, paramedic Keith MacQueen and his team were just 500m away. They were at the crash site in a couple of minutes.
KEITH MACQUEEN: The scene was definitely a confronting scene when we first arrived. There was one car ablaze in flames, flames that were reaching two storeys’ plus in height, then another car that was significantly damaged.
MELISSA DOYLE: None of the teens from the stolen car were seriously hurt. Little Jordan was shaken but fine. But his mum was dreadfully injured.
KEITH MACQUEEN: We found out very early on that she was pregnant. We estimated that she was in an advanced pregnancy.
MELISSA DOYLE: Where were you when this call came through?
DR KATE FIELD: I'd just left work and I was actually walking down the road.
(SIREN WAILS)
DR KATE FIELD: The fire engine just came screaming past and I thought to myself, "I wonder how long it's going to be until I get the call." And that was about 1:12am. So the only information I knew was that she was so terribly injured that it was likely that she was going to die even at that early phase. I rang Ambulance Comms and I asked for some more information. That was at about sixteen minutes past one, and it was at that point that I found out that she was heavily pregnant.
KEITH MACQUEEN: When I found out that she was pregnant, we had about five minutes to get her to hospital for the delivery of a...you know, of a reasonably healthy baby, and that time frame wasn't achievable, even though we were close to hospital. I honestly didn't think Sarah was going to survive and I honestly didn't think the baby was going to survive at this time.
DANIEL STIRLING: I know she's gone and not coming back.
(SIREN WAILS)
DR KATE FIELD: Seemed like a blink of an eye. We really only had moments to save the life of the baby.
MICHAEL PAINO: He was fighting. He was fighting to be alive.
MELISSA DOYLE: It was touch and go.
JANE PAINO: I was in tears. The first time I saw him, I was in tears.
DR KATE FIELD: This baby is a miracle baby.
SONG: # I miss you, I miss you... #
MELISA DOYLE: She loved you.
DANIEL STIRLING: She did. Very much so. And I loved her. I still do. Yeah, I don't think I'm gonna find - I won't - anyone that'll come close to her, ever. So...yeah. And I don't think I really want to.
MELISSA DOYLE: A senseless tragedy in the heart of a city took the life of a much-loved partner, a doting mum and adored daughter.
JANE PAINO: She was as close to perfect as you are going to get, yes.
MICHAEL PAINO: Should never have happened. Nuh. Totally wrong. Too young. You should never bury your children.
MELISSA DOYLE: But it was up to a dedicated team of paramedics and specialists to ensure this would not be a double tragedy. Sarah Paino was 32 weeks pregnant with her second child when life drained from her at the crash scene. When her heart stopped, her unborn baby's life hung in the balance.
KEITH MACQUEEN: My colleagues provided CPR to Sarah all the way to hospital. Quite a stressful, emotional situation for them.
MELISSA DOYLE: Administering CPR on a woman when the primary purpose is to keep her baby alive?
KEITH MACQUEEN: Yeah, that's right, and we...we knew that. We...we knew that was why we were doing it, and it is, it's a very strange... it's a strange feeling to be doing that - you're right, yeah.
MELISSA DOYLE: Sarah and Daniel met seven years ago.
DANIEL STIRLING: We clicked basically straightaway. Yeah, you know, I knew I'd found my companion.
MICHAEL PAINO: Now, Dad being Dad... you know, this is my little girl you're talking about. I said, "Who's this Daniel bloke?" You know? No-one just comes along and takes me Saresie. But it turned out he was good. And Sarah really loved him. Really. Mmm.
MELISSA DOYLE: She wanted to be a mum one day. Was it something that was really important to her?
JANE PAINO: Yes. Not at an early age, but when she met Daniel, that was the plan. Um...yes.
MELISSA DOYLE: Three years into their relationship, Sarah excitedly revealed that two would become three.
(SARAH LAUGHS)
DANIEL STIRLING: She came in with the pregnancy stick, came in waving at me. She's like, "Um...I'm pregnant." I'm like, "Oh!" Like, I was happy. Very happy. Very, very happy.
MELISSA DOYLE: Baby Jordan was born on April 23, 2014.
MICHAEL PAINO: He had the curly hair, and even now, when I look at Jordan, I'm looking at Sarah.
MELISSA DOYLE: And when Sarah fell pregnant a year later, she delivered the news in precisely the same way.
DANIEL STIRLING: She came in waving the pregnancy stick and she's like, "Um, I'm pregnant again!"
MELISSA DOYLE: Early tests revealed a boy was on the way. Sarah couldn't wait to name him.
DANIEL STIRLING: And she's like, "I really like Caleb." I said, "Yeah, I do too." She's like, "We'll settle with that one, eh?" "Yep." (LAUGHS)
JANE PAINO: Sarah wanted him so bad and was... even though she had Jordan, was looking forward to it, having two boys.
MICHAEL PAINO: You play through your mind, "What if?" What if...someone else had turned up to give him a lift? What if, you know, Sarah was at home? There's all these scenarios that play in your head.
MELISSA DOYLE: Describe the scene for me when Sarah is rushed in.
DR KATE FIELD: We really had about three minutes to prepare. It just seemed like the blink of an eye, and the next thing I saw was Sarah being wheeled in by the paramedics with CPR going on and all I could see was a massive belly.
MELISSA DOYLE: At 1:21am, less than 20 minutes after the crash, Caleb was delivered by emergency caesarean.
DR KATE FIELD: When Caleb came out, he was critically unwell. He was very flat. He didn't make any effort to breathe. He didn't make any effort to cry. He didn't open his eyes.
DR TONY DE PAOLI: Paediatric doctors put a tube down into his windpipe to help inflate his lungs and CPR to get his circulation going, and so with that, they were able to effectively get a heart rate and eventually he started breathing on his own, then he was transferred to the intensive care unit.
DR KATE FIELD: And that process, until he really got going on his own, took about 25 minutes.
MELISSA DOYLE: So it was touch and go?
DR KATE FIELD: It was very touch and go.
DR TONY DE PAOLI: I think when I first saw him, it was a few hours after he was born, and it struck me actually how stable he was at that point. And so as each day went by, we were becoming increasingly optimistic about his outcome.
DANIEL STIRLING: Oh, he's just an image of Sarah. Yeah. I just see Sarah in him all over. Thank my lucky stars he's here and Jordan's here.
DR KATE FIELD: This baby is just completely and utterly a miracle baby. The fact that the accident happened so close to the hospital, the fact that I was still available to be able to make those really critical decisions, the fact that they could get her to the hospital so quickly meant that we could actually give Caleb the opportunity of life.
KEITH MACQUEEN: It was really bittersweet for me at that time. You know, on the one hand, you've had this really truly astonishing event of having this baby being born under caesarean section in this remarkable situation, and yet at the same time, its mother had died, so, you know, it was... it was really sad, yeah.
JANE PAINO: I was just amazed the first time I saw him. I was in tears. Because I was just like, "Wow!" And happy seeing HIM... but knowing that... that mum... yeah… mum wasn't... Mmm. (WHISPERS) Yeah.
Kiss me hard before you go... #
MELISSA DOYLE: Hey, beautiful!
DANIEL STIRLING: You're a miracle baby, aren't you? I find it very hard. It crushes me.
I just wanted you to know... #
DANIEL STIRLING: Thank you for saving my boys' lives.
That, baby, you're the best... #
MELISSA DOYLE: You're a miracle. Just perfect.
I've got that summertime,
summertime sadness... #
DANIEL STIRLING: We'll get you out, little man, for a cuddle. Hey? A cuddle with Dad? Hey? Hey?
MELISSA DOYLE: (GASPS) Hi!
DANIEL STIRLING: How are you, Mel?
MELISSA DOYLE: Oh, Daniel, look at him! (CHUCKLES) Hi! Oh, he's just beautiful!
DANIEL STIRLING: (LAUGHS) Considering his rough start in life, he's... yeah, he's doing really well. Doing really well.
MELISSA DOYLE: And you reckon he looks like Mum, hey?
DANIEL STIRLING: I reckon he does. Mum all over. Yep.
MELISSA DOYLE: Meeting little Caleb, it's hard to believe he had such a traumatic start to life.
DANIEL STIRLING: You look and think, "Oh, you know, I could have had everyone wiped from me." Jordan, Caleb included. I don't like to think that, but, you know, they're still here, so... I think it's meant to be. Hey, dude. You'll get there.
MELISSA DOYLE: One of the biggest fears with Caleb was lack of oxygen and what that could do to him. Has he passed his tests?
DR TONY DE PAOLI: I think he's doing really well, actually, and I think despite that stress that he had early on in life, he's made a very good recovery from that short, sharp shock, if you like. So, his tests are encouraging. He's behaving really well.
DANIEL STIRLING: He's had all his tests and whatnot and all came back well, thank God. He should be a normal little boy.
MELISSA DOYLE: He's just perfect.
DANIEL STIRLING: Yeah, he is. You're a miracle baby, aren't you? You're a miracle.
MELISSA DOYLE: And it's all thanks to the heroic efforts of the emergency team on that night… What will you say to them?
DANIEL STIRLING: Just thank you. I'd like to say a very big thank you for saving my boys' lives. Um...yeah. And getting Sarah out of the car. I know it would have been very hard for them to do. Just unreal people. Unreal.
MELISSA DOYLE: I think the thing that's been most incredible in this story is the team effort from step one right through. There is someone here that is very, very grateful for all of that and would really like to say thank you.
DANIEL STIRLING: Hi, guys. Thanks very much. Hi.
(BOTH SPEAK QUIETLY)
DANIEL STIRLING: Oh! This is unreal.
(BOTH SPEAK INDISTINCTLY)
DANIEL STIRLING: Thanks, guys… You know, I'm not in denial that she's gone. I know she's gone and not coming back, but... yeah, I find it very hard. Day by day at the moment, so... Yeah.
DR KATE FIELD: Oh, Daniel.
DANIEL STIRLING: Thanks.
DR KATE FIELD: Good luck.
DANIEL STIRLING: Thanks for doing all you could.
KEITH MACQUEEN: Good luck, buddy. Yeah. Good luck, buddy.
DANIEL STIRLING: Thanks, mate. Cheers.
(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)
DANIEL STIRLING: It crushes me, you know? It's... It's hard. It's a hard thing to get my head around at the moment. But I've got to try, you know? For the boys. Yeah. Just focus on the road ahead and... keep the boys happy. Yeah.
MELISSA DOYLE: You're a very strong man.
DANIEL STIRLING: I try. (LAUGHS) I try.
MELISSA DOYLE: It's wonderful to be able to report Caleb is doing well, and a few days ago, doctors allowed him to go home with his dad. Information on a trust fund set up to support the family is on our website. Any help would be really appreciated. Penny McWhirter, Debi Marshall and Paul Waterhouse were the producers on our story. Stay with us. Coming very soon, Molly.
