New Mom Recalls Going into Labor and Giving Birth to ‘Miracle’ Baby During Hurricane Milton: ‘I Was Very Scared’

Mar. 15, 2025

Kenzie Lewellen holding her son, Dewey Lester Bennett IV.Photo:Courtesy Kim Savage

Courtesy Kim Savage

Kenzie Lewellen, 22, and her boyfriend, Dewey Bennett, 24, toldNBC Newsthat they were “nervous” and “stressed” after she went into labor at around 4 a.m. local time on Wednesday, Oct. 9 — the dayHurricane Miltonwas projected to make landfall.

There was also an additional concern for Bennett, who had previously lost a loved one experiencing a medical emergency during a similar storm. He told NBC News that his father had died during Hurricane Irma after he “had a massive heart attack” and an ambulance was not able to respond due to the storm.

Timing being the biggest concern, the couple knew the needed to check into the hospital before the storm made landfall at around 8:30 p.m. that evening. However, things were quickly worsening as their house in Port Charlotte, Fla. began flooding before her contractions began.

Dewey Bennett with his newborn son, Dewey Lester Bennett IV.Courtesy Kenzie Lewellen

Courtesy Kenzie Lewellen

“The day before, we were both calling the hospital and seeing if there was any way we can just check in,” she said. “But obviously during a storm, they don’t just let people come stay here, because they’re not a shelter.”

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Storm damage in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton on Oct. 10, 2024 in Venice, Florida.Sean Rayford/Getty

Sean Rayford/Getty

“I had so much going through my head at that point, a storm and my family,” Lewellen recalled to the outlet.

Storm debris from Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton litters the street in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton on October 10, 2024 in Venice, Florida.Sean Rayford/Getty

The Sarasota Memorial Health Care System’s CEO David Verinder tells PEOPLE in a statement: “We deliver more than 5,000 babies a year every hour of every day. Hurricane Milton certainly was not going to stop us."

“We are very happy we were able to welcome the newest Dewey into this world and all of the special deliveries who arrived during the storm,” he added.

After the couple’s son was delivered safely, the couple was able to breathe a sigh of relief, though Lewellen joked to NBC News that she is “probably going to give him a hard time for being so stubborn” during his birth.

source: people.com