Paramedic Dad Delivers Own Baby in Fast Food Parking Lot

Feb. 24, 2014— -- A North Carolina dad proved himself a modern-day MacGyver after delivering his baby girl in a fast food restaurant parking lot.

Paul Dupree is a trained paramedic and had some experience in delivering babies twice before, but never did he expect to deliver his own outside a Jack in the Box off the highway in Lincoln County last week.

Dupree and his girlfriend were on their way to the hospital when she went into labor and Dupree was forced to spring into action, using his training and some quick thinking to pull off the delivery.

"She told me, ‘I think the head is out,’ and I said, ‘Oh my,’” Dupree told ABC News affiliate WSOC-TV.

The couple had been to the hospital earlier that day after mother Erin Castro began contractions, but were sent home after being told the baby wasn’t ready to be born yet.

They were on their way back to Carolinas Medical Center when the baby decided it definitely was ready.

Dupree quickly pulled over and called 911. After setting the phone on the dashboard, he went to work, listening to the dispatcher’s instructions, while the whole ordeal was captured on audio.

“Is the baby completely out?” the dispatcher is heard asking.

“Yes, I have her in my hands,” Dupree replied.

Without the assistance of any medical gear, Dupree managed to deliver the baby before emergency crew arrived. Even when he discovered that the baby’s umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck, the new dad didn’t hesitate to improvise.

"We had to maneuver her a bit to get the cord untangled and once I got the cord untangled I used my shoestring to tie the cord off,” Dupree said.

The proud new parents say baby Harper Lynn is doing well after her unusual birth, and that they'll be keeping the shoestring as a momento.