Family reunites with traffic officer who rushed expectant mother through jam to hospital

In a heart-warming story, a family has been reunited with a traffic officer who escorted them through bumper-to-bumper traffic to get an expectant mom to give birth on time. 

Three years ago, Merle Botes from Belhar went into premature labour at 23 weeks with baby girl Scarlett, and her hubby rushed her to Life Vincent Pallotti Hospital. 

But they got stuck in heavy N2 traffic. Merle recalled that day (November 25,2023), telling the Cape Argus sister publication, Daily Voice: “My pregnancy was very difficult. A week prior, I was supposed to get a stitch so that I could not go into labour too early, but they could not do it because I was open too far already.

“But the doctors still gave us a few days. That morning I woke up and there was a dash of blood. When I felt the warmth, I screamed because there were just clots coming out.”

As the couple hit the N2, she panicked at the sight of the packed-up traffic. 

But her husband acted quickly, asking a nearby traffic officer to assist them. That’s when Officer Blaauw stepped in. 

Merle added: “She escorted us to Life Vincent Palotti, and they gave me steroid injections to keep her back for a few days. I was in the hospital that whole week, and the injections worked for a few days, but after 48 hours, the labour started again.

“I bled again and they couldn’t hold her back anymore. 

“The biggest part was when the doctors told me that if he had to sit in that traffic, Scarlett would have come out, and there wouldn’t have been any medical assistance to help such a small baby, but God was on our side.”

When the Botes family returned home with their new family member, Scarlett had to be placed on a mic-key tube to be fed through her stomach for two years due to her lungs being immature.

The family always wanted to thank the officer, so they reached out to the City of Cape Town to thank the officer for helping them that day.

The mom added: “Seeing Officer Blaauw again was like a happy moment. I always said to my husband that I want to give back to her and make her feel that what she has done, we appreciate her very much.

“She could have said that she is stationed to stand there and can’t leave, but she didn’t say anything and just asked what hospital and we were on our way.”

Officer Blaauw, who escorted the couple to the door of the ICU, said she did not think anything of saving the baby’s life, as it was her job.

She said: “I am glad that I could help.”