by Angela Cole

With these words, Damien McComiskey expressed the harrowing 21-minute ordeal as his newly-born son Benedict fought in vain for his life.

In an exclusive interview with the Kent Messenger, Mr McComiskey told how his son was born by emergency Caesarean more than 64 hours after mum Fiona Murray’s waters broke.

Now the grieving couple are demanding to know why it took so long for their son to be delivered – and whether his death could have been avoided.

Benedict was delivered just after 2am on Tuesday, March 1 – almost three days after 40-year-old Fiona was sent home because she was not in full labour.

Ms Murray and 36-year-old partner Damien McComiskey, from Peel Street, Maidstone, claim they were told there was only one midwife on duty when they arrived at the Maidstone Hospital unit – something hospital managers strenuously deny.

The maternity unit, set to close in September when women’s and children’s services move to the new Pembury Hospital, will be replaced with a small, midwife-led unit for non-complicated births only.

Ms Murray had undergone IVF to conceive Benedict. After a healthy pregnancy, her waters broke at 8.30pm on Saturday, February 26, but the couple were told to go home when they reached hospital, and return at 8am on Monday for an induced labour.

However, it wasn’t until midnight on Monday that she had an epidural, and Benedict was born at 2.11am by emergency Caesarean.

Although born with a heartbeat, despite the staff’s best efforts, he was pronounced dead at 2.32am.

Mr McComiskey said: "I held his hand and he squeezed my thumb. I said to him 'Come on, breathe for your mummy'."

"There was a window of opportunity to get that little boy out of her tummy, and they missed it.

"We want to know why it happened and, more importantly, if it could have been prevented. Our boy should never have got to that stage."

Ms Murray said: "I thought this was my chance; every test I had; every scan I had, was fine.

"My pregnancy was ticking boxes all the way along the line. To get to the last bit, and this happen, I just can’t believe it.

"I was so distraught. It feels so wrong."

The couple had suffered a miscarriage once before, and Benedict was conceived on their first attempt at IVF.

It was just two days before his due date when Ms Murray’s waters broke at a corner shop across the road from her home.

The couple admitted they were quite anxious, because Benedict had been such a longed-for baby.

"I started crying when they told me to go home on the Saturday night," said Ms Murray. "I even offered to stay in the waiting area."

The couple have had an independent post mortem carried out on Benedict at King’s College Hospital, London.

The results are not yet known and an inquest has yet to be held.

Head of midwifery at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells Trust, which runs Maidstone Hospital, Gillian Duffey said: "The death of this baby is a tragic event and we offer our deepest sympathy to Fiona and Damien.

"The death is unexplained and we have referred the issue to the coroner. None of the tests and monitoring we carried out indicated any problem at all.

"When Fiona was sent home on Saturday, February 26, and told to come back on February 28 it was because she was not then in labour, and for no other reason."