Cebu doctor delivers baby by the roadside after magnitude 6.9 earthquake

CEBU CITY — Shortly after the 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck Cebu at 9:59 p.m. on Tuesday night, September 30, patients of Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) were immediately evacuated to the open area outside of the hospital.

Among the last to leave the building was Dr. Gracita Rabago, an obstetrician-gynecologist, who was still taking care of three women who just gave birth in the labor room.

"We had to make sure that our patients are safe first before we left the building," Rabago, who has practiced medicine for 17 years, said.

L-R: Dr. Gracita Rabago and the last team standing at Cebu City Medical Center after the earthquake; Patients were evacuated to the open space outside of CCMC. Photos courtesy of Dr. Gracita Rabago

Among those wheeled out of the hospital was another woman who was fully dilated and ready to give birth to her first baby.

There were still aftershocks after the major tremor and then, a heavy downpour followed. 

Rabago and her team had to deal with the aftershocks and the rain with the limited medical supply available to them.

Even then, the team successfully delivered a healthy baby boy by the roadside.

Last night's experience was Rabago's second time to deliver a baby under challenging circumstances.

In 2011, she also delivered the baby of a neighbor, a person with mental health challenges, who gave birth in Barangay Poblacion Pardo, Cebu City.

"While exiting the building last night, I already thought I might have to deliver another baby by the roadside because of he urgency of the situation. It happened! That was one of my most unforgettable experiences in 2025," she said.

Rabago said she is grateful that the delivery had no complications but they had to administer tetanus toxoid and tetanus immunoglobulin to the mother because of sterility concerns. 

The baby boy is currently under the care of the Pediatrics Department. 

As of press time, the mother, who was admitted with high blood pressure, is still being monitored by doctors so she can be reunited with her baby and later discharged from the hospital.

Rabago said the successful delivery was a collective effort by the OB-GYN department's doctors, nurses, midwives, and the entire CCMC team.

"Thank you to everyone for helping out. Big thanks to he student nurses and their CI (class instructor) who was on duty that time at the CCMC labor room," she said. 

Cebu Province was placed under a state of calamity due to the earthquake. —KG, GMA Integrated News