KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WOKI / WVLT) — What was supposed to be a quick trip to the hospital turned into an unforgettable delivery story for a Morristown family when a baby girl was born in a car on Cumberland Avenue during Tennessee football gameday traffic Saturday.
Jessy Cole was working her shift at a retail store on Kingston Pike when she began feeling unwell around 5 p.m. Believing she needed medical attention, she clocked out early and headed toward Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center. Under normal conditions, the drive takes about 10 minutes.
Instead, heavy traffic surrounding Tennessee’s season opener created significant delays. Cole said the trip stretched to nearly 45 minutes, and at one point she sat through five cycles of the same traffic light without moving through the intersection.
As she made her way down Cumberland Avenue near the hospital, Cole realized she was out of time.
“By the time I got to Cumberland, that’s when I started pushing,” Cole said. She called 911 and followed dispatchers’ instructions to pull over. Within minutes, labor intensified.
Before emergency responders could arrive, Cole delivered her daughter alone in the driver’s seat of her vehicle.
The newborn, Maeve Marie Cole, arrived nearly a month ahead of schedule. Her expected due date was October 7, and Cole said she did not initially realize she was in labor because everything happened so quickly.
“It just happened so fast,” Cole said. “I don’t think I could really think of anything else.”
The unexpected arrival caught the family off guard. Cole said she and her husband, Chase, had not yet packed a hospital bag or completed the nursery in preparation for their daughter’s arrival. Despite being premature, doctors reported that Maeve was healthy and meeting all expected benchmarks.
“We didn’t have a bag packed for the hospital, but she’s healthy,” Cole said. “They said she’s making all her marks and all her vitals are good.”
Chase Cole was still about 20 minutes away from the hospital when he received word that his wife and newborn daughter were safe.
“It was just a big sigh of relief,” he said. “It was a blessing that everything went as smoothly as it did.”
While thankful for the outcome, Chase said he regretted not being there to support his wife during the birth.
“Just hate that I couldn’t have been there right by her to hold her hand through it,” he said. “But the main thing is that they’re both okay.”
American Medical Response reported responding to approximately 200 calls during the busy gameday period, highlighting the demands placed on emergency services as thousands of fans filled Knoxville for the Vols’ home opener.
For the Cole family, the experience has already become a story that will live on for years.
“Well, she has a cool story,” Chase said of his daughter.
And thanks to an unexpected traffic jam, Maeve Marie Cole’s birth story is one she will likely be telling for the rest of her life.
