Mother gives birth to baby boy at PETROL STATION while on her way to hospital

By FRANCINE WOLFISZ, NEWS REPORTER Published: 13:07, 11 June 2026 | Updated: 13:16, 11 June 2026 A mother gave birth on the backseat of her car at a petrol station while dashing to hospital.  Sarah Frost, 29, delivered son Albie on Sunday evening 'in the back of daddy's car', which amid the drama had been forced to pull into the forecourt of Esso in Sedgefield, County Durham. The expectant mother had been eating a homemade chicken curry at her mother-in-law's house in Trimdon when she suddenly felt her waters break at around 7pm. Her partner James Charlton, 32, and his sister Danielle, leapt into action and decided to drive to the nearest hospital ten minutes away after Danielle noticed the baby was 'crowning'.  But as they made their way to University Hospital of North Tees in Stockton, Sarah - who was almost full term - suddenly screamed. She said: 'I was shouting 'I can feel the baby!' 'I asked James' sister who was in the back seat with me to have a look and she said "I can see a ginger head." I knew the baby was coming there and then. 'I was shouting, "We need to pull over right now!"' Sarah Frost gave birth to her son, Albie, while in the backseat of her car after it pulled into a petrol station on the way to hospital Sarah Frost, 29, pictured with her newborn, delivered baby Albie on Sunday evening Sarah's partner, James Charlton, 32, cut the cord after paramedics arrived at the scene James drove their Vauxhall Astra into an Esso station on the A177 where his sister called 999 while he delivered his son. Sarah said: 'Within literally two minutes of parking on the forecourt, the baby just popped out. 'James was brilliant, he was really calm. He even took off his t-shirt to wrap Albie up while we waited for help to arrive. 'An ambulance had been on its way back from another job and Danielle flagged it down, and paramedics arrived and even let James cut the cord.' Amid the chaos, petrol station staff came dashing out with towels, bedsheets and t-shirts to keep the newborn warm.  Speaking to BBC Radio Tees, Sarah added that she 'just wanted chocolate afterwards' and was delighted to be handed a Twirl by staff.  She said of the drama: 'I was quite calm, I just took it in my stride. I don't think any of us panicked as much as we should have!'  Albie, who weighed 7lbs 5oz, was taken to hospital as a precaution, but both he and Sarah were discharged the next day. The baby, named Albie and weighing 7lbs 5oz, was taken to hospital as a precaution and discharged home the next day Mother-of-two Sarah, from Trimdon, County Durham, added: 'It was just a mad birth. 'At 7pm I was really enjoying a curry and an hour later I had a baby in my arms. 'My due date was Wednesday and my previous labour was really long so I wasn't expecting anything like a quick birth. 'It took us all by surprise, but the hospital staff were brilliant and kept asking how the "Esso baby" was. 'If Albie gets interested in cars when he gets older we'll certainly know where it all started.' No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.