The Human Chain That Delivered a Baby

In August 2017, Hurricane Harvey turned a two-mile hospital trip into an impossible journey. Annie Smith, 32, was in labor in Houston, and floodwater surrounded her apartment.

Annie and her husband, Greg Smith, were both doctors. That helped, but it did not make the situation any less terrifying.

Greg started preparing for a possible home birth. He gathered scissors, sewing needles, and other supplies while his mother boiled water to sterilize them.

A neighbor checked on them, then sent a message through the apartment complex asking for help. Within about 30 minutes, at least 15 people were inside, including medical trainees and an OB-GYN intern.

The Smiths had been calling 911 and the Texas National Guard emergency number since 8 a.m. They could not get through.

The breakthrough came through Annie's fellowship director. The director's father lived near a fire station, walked there, and told firefighters what was happening.

A flatbed rescue truck arrived around noon. By then, the water was several feet deep, and the truck could not simply pull up like a taxi.

Neighbors and firefighters formed a human chain. Annie moved person to person until firefighters helped her up a ladder and onto the truck.

She rode to Texas Children's Hospital sitting on a fire hose with a shower curtain over her head. About 15 minutes later, she was in the hospital.

Adrielle Smith was born at 1:59 a.m. on August 28, 2017, weighing 7 pounds, 6 ounces. Harvey filled the streets, but a chain of strangers got her there.