On April 27th, Alana Taylor gave birth to a healthy baby boy.
He was three weeks premature, weighed six pounds, two ounces, and was born at 17,000 feet.
The quick labour took place in the back of a medevac plane, on the way from Dawson to Whitehorse.
Divyne Taylor-Chudy was born somewhere between Carmacks and Pelly Crossing.
Earlier in the day, Taylor had gone to a clinic in Dawson because she had been feeling pangs, she told the News on Monday.
The doctor assured her everything was fine and sent her home.
Taylor wasn’t due for another three weeks yet. She and her partner, Vince Chudy, were just getting packed and ready to head south to Whitehorse to await the new baby.
But he decided to show up sooner.
Around 6 p.m., Taylor felt a strange popping sensation and realized that her water had just broken.
Chudy called the ambulance and Taylor was whisked off to the clinic where she waited for Dr. Ngozi Ikeji and the medevac plane, which arrived around 10 p.m.
There was some discussion about whether Taylor should stay and have the baby in Dawson, but in the end they decided to get her to Whitehorse.
Taylor didn’t realize that she’d be giving birth on a plane until it was almost over, she said.
“It was really fast.”
The flight to Whitehorse General Hospital took about 50 minutes.
It took the dad and four-year-old brother Darnel much longer to make their way south by car. The family was reunited around 8 a.m. the next day.
Divyne means supremely pleasing, said Chudy.
Also extremely pleasing was the break he gave to Mom.
“The doctor said that if he had been full-term he would have been nine pounds,” said Taylor.
The proud parents have been showing off their new son around Whitehorse, decked out from head to toe in Vancouver Canucks paraphernalia.
The Canucks are Chudy’s favourite team.
But as Divyne grows older, he may choose to follow his older brother Darnel in supporting the Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators or whatever team happens to be facing off against Vancouver.
The family will be heading back to Dawson on Friday.
Taylor and Chudy expressed special thanks to the medevac pilots and doctors for their help.
Contact Chris Oke at chriso@yukon-news.com