Evacuation trip yields little blessings for these moms

Published 12:00 am Friday, September 17, 2004

NATCHEZ &045;&045; It wasn’t supposed to happen this way.

Leslie Killian and Kenyatta Robinson both had doctors and hospitals picked out back home. They had everything planned.

But Hurricane Ivan and their little ones had different plans.

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So at 12:32 a.m. Thursday Carter Michael Killian was born at Natchez Regional Hospital, not in his parents’ hometown, Metairie, La.

And down the hall at 2:21 a.m. Ky’liha Robinson was introduced to the world in Natchez, not New Orleans.

&uot;You plan for nine months and say this is what’s going to happen,&uot; Leslie Killian said. &uot;This wasn’t in my plan.&uot;

So at around 11 a.m. Wednesday morning when Killian started having labor pains at her aunt Darlene Christian’s Natchez home she didn’t tell anyone.

In fact she endured the pain privately for two more hours before finally breaking down and telling her family. At 1:30 p.m. the family, Killian’s mother, father, grandmother, aunt and husband, loaded the expectant mother up and headed to Natchez Regional.

The Killians left the Metairie area Tuesday around 11 a.m. to flee from Hurricane Ivan, planning to be back home before Leslie’s Monday due date.

&uot;Her doctor told us to get out of town,&uot; husband Paul Killian said. &uot;She said she was going to Houston and wasn’t on call.&uot;

In hindsight the couple said they were glad they left when they did and avoided huge traffic jams.

&uot;I would have ending up having him in the car,&uot; Killian said.

Once at Natchez Regional the hospital knew nothing of Killian’s records but was able to contact the hospital in Metairie to get them, Nurse Annette Rabb said.

&uot;We couldn’t be more pleased with the care here,&uot; Leslie Killian said, baby in arms and surrounded by family.

Her mother, father and grandmother made the trip to Natchez Wednesday morning before Killian went into labor.

Though she said she paid no attention to the hurricane once she went into to labor, Killian said she couldn’t wait to tell Carter about his birthday.

&uot;I’ll say ‘Let me tell you about you,’&uot; she said looking at the sleeping infant. &uot;You were just destined to be born here.&uot;

Rabb said the hurricane may have played a bigger role in Carter’s early birth than destiny.

&uot;The barometric pressure dropped,&uot; Rabb said. &uot;A lot of obstetricians believe that affects it and I definitely do.&uot;

For New Orleans resident Robinson though, Ky’liha came right on time, even though her mother wasn’t ready.

&uot;I wasn’t prepared at all for this,&uot; Robinson said. &uot;I kept thinking ‘I’m going to hold off until I get back home.’&uot;

Robinson came to Natchez Tuesday with her two other children and mother to ride out the storm with her grandmother who lives here. She said she wasn’t planning to flee the hurricane at all but came at her grandmother’s urging.

&uot;I’m just ready to go back,&uot; Robinson said Thursday. &uot;I want to get home.&uot;