A third class petty officer aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower delivered a beautiful baby girl while her shipmates were delivering airstrikes to ISIS. The petty officer checked into the carrier’s medical clinic on Saturday complaining of stomach pains. She claims that she had no idea she was pregnant at the time. Any doubts that she was carrying a child while on the ship were erased when she delivered the healthy, seven-pound, baby only nine hours later. Normally, pregnant women are forced to leave an operational command at approximately 20 weeks. However, the woman and her commanding officers claim they had no idea she was pregnant.
USS Dwight D Eisenhower
U.S. Naval Forces Central Command spokesman Cmdr. Bill Urban states that both the woman and the baby are doing well. The pair spent approximately one hour aboard the carrier before being airlifted to Bahrain with a medical escort in tow. Despite this being a highly irregular event the on-board medical staff went into emergency mode and began preparing incubators, diapers, and baby formula to care for the newborn.
Urban told reporters in an email that despite being highly unusual circumstances the crew was prepared and worked quickly to care for the mother and child. He stated:
“As the baby was born at sea aboard an operational unit, the main focus for the U.S. Navy, the ship and its crew is the safety and well-being of the baby and the mother,”
Many people are left wondering whether the baby is technically American since it was was born in international waters. Thankfully, U.S. Navy vessels are considered sovereign American territory and the child will grow up to be a proud American citizen.
The U.S. Navy is withholding the names of both the baby and the mother for privacy concerns.
[revad2]
