A dad delivered his baby daughter by the side of a road after his wife gave birth in the passenger seat of their car - while stuck in rush hour traffic.

Karla Linkins, 35, had been on the way to hospital with husband Edd, 35, when she realised little Darcy-Anne wasn't going to wait any longer.

Edd pulled over on a housing estate in Telford, Shrops, and dialled 999 but was quickly forced to turn midwife himself.

He was able to catch the 7lbs 2oz newborn 'as she flew out' before she landed on the floor of their Nissan Qashqai.

A kind-hearted stranger then brought out blankets to keep Darcy-Anne warm and paramedics arrived at the scene to take mum and baby to hospital.

Edd, a Jaguar Land Rover maintenance engineer, said: "It was almost surreal."

"There were moments I was thinking ‘am I really doing this – is this really happening’."

"When I was on the phone to 999 saying this baby is coming and then she popped out and I was saying ‘I can see the head’ and I was thinking I have got to deliver this now because they are not getting here in time."

"Then one more contraction and Darcy flew straight out and I was able to catch her."

"I could see her steaming because it was only three degrees and I was just thinking I have got to keep her warm. "

"I used a towel to clean her and dry her and then got rid of that and wrapped her in a blanket."

"I have never been so relieved to see the ambulance coming round the corner – I was jumping up and down and making sure they saw us."

"I said "it’s over to you guys now"."

"Then I was stood on the side of the road, mum and baby were in the ambulance and I was thinking ‘are they okay’."

"I didn’t want to knock and eventually one of the paramedics – it felt like a lifetime – they got out and said ‘everything is good with mum and baby – you did a good job – are you okay to drive and follow us to hospital?'."

Karla, a financial crime consultant, said her waters broke at around 3.50am on Wednesday, February 7.

The couple went to Telford's Princess Royal Hospital (PRH) where they were seen and given the option to stay, but without a bed because the hospital was so busy.

They decided to return home and "ride out the labour" with plans to return in time to give birth."

Karla's mum had come round to look after their first-born Finley, six, and make sure he got to school if they needed to dash back to the hospital.

But having only arrived back at 7am it wasn't long before they were out of the door again.

Karla said: "Obviously Finley had school that day so he came downstairs and was having breakfast on the sofa and there's me walking round having random contractions with my mum frantically writing down the time I was having them."

"About 7.50am things really started happening and I said 'if we do not get to the hospital then I am having this baby on the carpet'."

Karla said the dash to the hospital saw them hit 'every red light', stuck in rush hour traffic – with Edd pleading for her to hold on until they reached the hospital.

She added: "I was having contractions on the way and I had another by the Morrisons in Lawley. "

"At this point I was saying 'this baby is going to be born in the car' and Edd was saying 'we are five minutes from the hospital, please can you just wait'."

"I said 'no' and he rang the ambulance – it was rush hour, there was traffic everywhere, every traffic light seemed to be red."

"I said 'you need to get off the road' because the ambulance was going to need a street name to find us."

"He managed to pull up on the side of the road – I said this baby is going to be born and the next contraction she was born and Edd caught her as she came out before she hit the floor."

Karla still had no idea if it was a boy or a girl – and she also told how one kind passer-by had turned up with blankets.

She said: "At this point Edd knew she was a girl but I had not noticed and I was going 'what is it, what is it'."

"As that happened a really kind lady came over, we don’t know if she was on the way to work or walking a dog – but she was passing blankets to us."

"Then the ambulance turned around the corner and I don’t think Edd has ever been so pleased to see a blue-light vehicle. "

"He was jumping around all over the place trying to flag them down."

With everything fine at the hospital they were back home for 3.30pm with Ed able to do the school run to pick up Finley – and introduce the youngster to his new sister.

Karla also praised the ambulance service and the women and children's unit at the hospital.

She added: "The ambulance service were so wonderful."

"They were with us within ten minutes and obviously the women and children's unit and our midwife looked after us so well, they were brilliant."