Her dad delivered her baby. Yes, her dad.

“Who will be present at the birth?”

It’s a question a lot of soon-to-be-mothers ask themselves before the arrival of their baby.

I’ve heard many women say, their partner, mum, sister, sister-in-law, friend. But I imagine it’s rare for a mum to say, “I’d like my dad to be there as I give birth”.

Say what?

Sure, each to their own. But it isn’t something I imagine would be a regular response. After all, childbirth is surely one of the most primal, intimate and personal moments a mother will go through. It’s often been seen as a space reserved for the mother-to-be and her closest companion or family.

Father, Rocky Anderson probably agreed …

Until.

Rocky’s daughter Lakeya went into labour. In the car. On the way to the hospital.

There certainly wasn’t time for hesitation when he soon realised that he was the only person left to deliver her baby.

Rocky pumped himself up by telling himself, “I watch National Geographic. I think I can do it. Why not?”

The Oklahoma man was a grandfather in 30 minutes after he delivered the baby in a petrol station. He chuckled as he remembers the moment he told her to push, “I put my hands there and [said] ‘push’ and sure enough, she let out a scream. I don’t know how you women do it.”

His daughter was terrified, “I remember feeling her head and and I knew yeah, we weren’t going to make it at all [to the hospital]”.

The baby was named London. It’s birth place? The address given to the ambulance drivers, a restaurant next to the petrol station. The restaurant was called the Barking Frog Bar.

The lesson for the rest of us?

Life’s what happens when you’re making other plans.

Congratulations, Rocky!

Have you got an unusual birth story? We’d love to hear about it. Email us at eliza@mamamia.com.au

Watch the video below to hear more about this incredible story: