Father turned away from hospital with pregnant wife delivers baby on bathroom floor.

An ice-cool dad who delivered his baby daughter on the bathroom floor just hours after his wife was sent home from hospital stayed calm when he realised the child wasn't breathing.

Tony Molloy, 44, used knowledge from watching birthing videos to remove the umbilical cord from baby Rosalyn's neck, then he slapped her on the back to get her lungs working.

'She was grey and not breathing,' said Tony. 'I was talking to her, saying "come on little one, breathe for Daddy".

'It was only five or six seconds, but it seemed like an eternity. I turned her over to smack her on the back and it must have kick-started her lungs - she sprang into life'.

Tony and wife Rebecca, 33, were staying in Wilmslow, Cheshire, when she started having contractions.

They rushed to St Mary's Hospital in Manchester, but Rebecca was told she wasn't ready, despite being 38 weeks into the pregnancy. The couple, of Newbury, Berkshire, went back to the house - but three hours later, Rebecca was doubled up in pain on the bathroom floor.

Tony said he called the hospital to ask what to do and could not get any response. He said: 'I brought the car round so that we could drive back to St Mary's and as I went back into the bathroom, Rebecca was pushing. I told her the car was ready, in my calmest, most reassuring voice, but she said, "there's no time for that".

"There was no mistaking that Rosalyn was on her way". Tony shouted to a friend to call an ambulance, but knew the birth was imminent - so with only a 999 operator to help, he took control. 'I was pretty calm,' he said. 'I'd sort of prepared myself and I'd watched a couple of dozen birth videos, so I pretty much knew what to expect.'

Both mother and baby are now back at home and recovering well.

Tony - a freelance IT project manager - said: 'This was by far the most awesome experience of my life,' he said.

'It is impossible to put into words how I feel having brought my own little girl into the world. 'My advice if you're expecting is discuss it between yourselves, speak to your midwife and ask to help in the delivery. I will be delivering Rosalyn's brothers and sisters.'

A hospital spokesman said if a mother was not in 'established labour' she was encouraged to return home and phone if the situation changed. The spokesman added: 'We would encourage the family to contact our patient advice service if they have any concerns over the care received.'

Source : The Daily Mail