Chantelle Ali, 33, had been enjoying the last day of her holiday with her partner when she started experiencing contractions five weeks early – the mum was then left stranded in Spain with her baby
A British woman’s ‘babymoon’ turned into a nightmare after she was left stranded in Tenerife after going into labour five weeks early.
Chantelle Ali, 33, had been on the final day of her holiday with her partner Ben Major when she started experiencing contractions at just 35 weeks. Hotel staff rushed her to a hospital and Chantelle endured a full day in labour. The Brit gave birth to her son Rico at 7.08pm on July 12, but they remain on the Spanish island nearly a fortnight on.
Chantelle and Rico have been unable to return home due the lengthy process to obtain an emergency travel document for the baby.
The mum, from Gloucester, said she has been living out of a carrier bag in an apartment in Playa de las Américas ever since, as her suitcase is stranded at the airport. Having fled their package holiday hotel a day before they were due to fly home, Chantelle’s suitcase remains stranded at the airport, and she said it will cost £150 to retrieve it.
She said: “It has been a highly emotional and mentally draining experience. Not just to have a baby prematurely but in a foreign country is very scary. Google Translate saves me basically. There are a few nurses who can speak English but there are obviously a lot that can’t.
“It is always worrying because you don’t know if you are getting all the correct information. We love Tenerife and we come out here all the time. I don’t think I want to see Tenerife for a while.”
Chantelle revealed her waters started leaking two days before the birth, but with so little time left on the trip, she planned to see doctors once back in the UK. The couple had been enjoying a boat trip on Saturday but after returning to their hotel Chantelle began experiencing contractions.
She assumed these were Braxton Hicks – contractions that are false labour pains – but when it did not stop she made her way down to reception and asked staff to call her an ambulance. She was taken to Our Lady of Candelaria University Hospital.
Chantelle said: “The contractions were getting stronger and stronger so I ended up taking myself down to reception and telling the poor young Spanish lad behind the reception desk that I was having a baby. It was the worst labour out of all my kids, it was the most painful.
“It was the worst 48 hours ever. I had just given birth to a premature baby and my partner had to go. I was just left here in a foreign hospital on my own. It was quite scary.”
Rico was due to be delivered via C-section back in England, but now holds a Spanish birth certificate. Born five weeks premature, he experienced some breathing difficulties and was placed in the ICU receiving oxygen, where he continues to remain.
Ben was forced to fly back to the UK the following day to arrange childcare for their two other children and ensure their dog was left with a family member before making his return.
The hospital was far from the tourist area, with Chantelle revealing it is an hour’s bus ride from where they collect their shopping and supplies. The hospital stay is covered by her insurance, but all other expenses must be met by the family themselves, including a £400 a week apartment and transport costs.
To bring Rico home, the family must provide both their passports, birth certificates, MATB1 form, proof of flights, photos of the baby, hospital documents, and proof he was premature. They currently have no indication of when this might happen.
Chantelle, who got in touch through Sell Us Your Story, said: “It is a lot of paperwork. When I was first told all of this I was very overwhelmed. Each day is a step closer to home that is what I keep thinking.”
You can donate to the family’s fundraiser HERE.
