Parents, Newborn Meet 9-1-1 Dispatcher Who Helped Deliver Baby

Eight days after his early arrival, newborn Diego Angel Sandoval was the center of attention at Santa Cruz Regional 9-1-1 Center on Wednesday afternoon. 

His parents, Edgar Sandoval and Mirtha Padilla, brought the baby boy and his big sister, 2½-year-old Azuena, to meet the emergency dispatchers who helped the family though Diego's speedy birth.

The boy was born at home in Watsonville on March 9, five days early and less than two hours after Padilla's first contraction.

Emergency dispatcher Abby Hernandez, who talked Sandoval through the delivery on speaker phone, said she was surprised at a how quickly Diego was born.

"I was expecting the medics to get there before," she said. "... It was really fast."

On Wednesday, Hernandez hugged Padilla, a childhood friend she hadn't seen in more than 15 years, and cuddled baby Diego.

"It was a very exciting moment," Hernandez said, talking about the birth with the parents.

Sandoval had another word for the experience. "It was intense," he said.

Diego was 6 pounds, 13 ounces, and 19 3/4 inches long. He and mom went to the hospital by ambulance and stayed the night but are home and healthy now.

His sister has taken to calling him "Mi Diego," or "My Diego," dad said.