'Miracle Baby:' Mom gives birth in burning ambulance during Camp Fire in Butte County

ByABC7 News KGO logo
Thursday, November 15, 2018
Mom describes surviving Camp Fire with her 'miracle baby'
Heather Roebuck says she never imagined bringing her baby into this world in the middle of an inferno.

BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. -- Heather Roebuck says she never imagined bringing her baby into this world in the middle of an inferno.

"I thought that minute that I saw her was going to be the only time I ever saw her," said Roebuck.

The new mom described how she and her "miracle baby" survived during Camp Fire in Butte County.

Roebuck spoke to ABC-affiliated KXTV.

Roebuck says she gave birth to baby Hallie by C-section when the Camp Fire bore down on Feather River Hospital in Paradise.

"It was sheer terror," Roebuck recalled. "They just stitched me up really quickly."

VIDEO: First responders rescue woman trying to escape Camp Fire in a wheelchair

Roebuck says her husband took their newborn as she was taken away by ambulance, but after driving a short distance her ambulance caught fire.

"I realized that I'm not going to make it," Roebuck said. "I just told him (my husband) on the phone that I was really sorry and that I loved him, and that I wasn't going to be there with our kids."

At that moment, a pediatrician came to the rescue. Roebuck and other hospital patients survived by seeking shelter at a nearby home.

A team of paramedics and nurses did everything they could to keep the fire away, saving Roebuck's life.

As for Hallie, Roebuck says she's her "miracle baby."

We have complete Camp Fire coverage here.

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