Bangkok (dpa) – Bangkok police have delivered 100 babies in the capital's notorious traffic jams since special maternity training was introduced to the force 15 years ago, officials said Wednesday. “One of our officers has delivered 30 babies, which might be a world record. We have to check with Guinness,” said Police Major General Manit Wongsomboon, deputy commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau. The bureau has been providing midwifery training to select members of the Bangkok traffic police force for 15 years, with the first traffic baby delivered by the squad on September 8, 1997. A new batch of 100 traffic police arrived at Bangkok Hospital Wednesday for a one-day course on car deliveries. “Today, for the first time, we have included 10 women police among the trainees,” Manit said. “We're thinking that women police will provide a gentler touch to traffic baby deliveries.” Police Sergeant Sumalee Thani said the training would make her more confident about delivering babies in a car. “Anyway, I'm not afraid of blood,” Sumalee said. Bangkok, a city of more than 10 million residents, has been plagued by congestion for decades as the economy has boomed and more than 100,000 new cars have been added to the city's streets each year. The congestion led to the establishment of the Bangkok traffic police force in 1993, which branched out into midwifery after officers faced a sudden rise in the number of car deliveries for pregnant women unable to make it to hospital in time. Police Senior Sergeant Phichet Wisetchote has delivered 30 babies in Bangkok traffic. “The hardest thing is trying to get rid of the spectators,” Phichet told dpa. “Some people try to take pictures or videos of the baby delivery, which is a violation of the woman's rights.” BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/LkyGz Tags: Babies, Maternity Police, Thailand, Trafficking Section: East Asia, Features, Latest News, Women
