Sask. man living in Houston welcomes flood baby

It’s a happy ending for a couple caught up in the devastating floods in Houston, Texas.

Former Saskatchewan resident Danny Leibel and wife Michelle welcomed baby Blake to the world early Wednesday.

“There’s a silver lining sometimes in all of this stuff and you got keep pushing forward and keep your head high,” Leibel said.

The couple’s second child arrived ahead of schedule, and during a time when most of the city was underwater and in chaos.

The family is one of the fortunate few that haven’t lost their home in the floods. Their home is located in the city’s northeast corner, where flooding isn’t as bad.

With their baby due in a few weeks, and roads around them flooded, the couple wasn’t taking any chances.

They had made arrangements with nurses in their neighbourhood to have the baby at home should they not be able to get to a hospital.

Leibel said the plan suddenly changed Tuesday, when water in their neighbourhood started rising quickly and officials warned it could go even higher.

“(She said), ‘I don’t feel safe. I think I’ve got to get out of here,” Leibel recalled.

He called a friend with a large truck to drive his wife and their son to her sister’s house, away from the major flooding.

Leibel stayed behind, but it wasn’t long before he got the call the baby was arriving early.

“Three hours later her water broke, next you know I was trying to get out of my neighbourhood to the hospital,” Leibel said.

He made it and was able to witness Blake’s birth at 1:39 a.m.

“She got out in the nick of time because the birth happened really fast,” Leibel said.

With all the devastation around them, Leibel said it’s nice to have a reason to smile again. He added mom and baby are doing great and will spend a few days in hospital before going home.