Couple Welcomes Son 10 Weeks Early During Hurricane Helene: 'He's Going to Have Quite the Story to Tell'

"One of the nurses said, ‘I thought you were going to name the baby ‘Helene,' " mom Jewelia Crowe recalls, adding, ’I said, ‘No, I'm not doing that' "

<p>Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard</p> Parents Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard with their baby Phoenix

Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard

Parents Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard with their baby Phoenix
  • Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard of Robbinsville, North Carolina, welcomed son Phoenix 10 weeks early on Sept. 27, which coincided with the arrival of Hurricane Helene

  • Still, Dillard tells PEOPLE that "you would never know all this crazy stuff was going on outside" because the hospital staffers kept everything "running smoothly"

  • Little Phoenix, who was born weighing less than 3 lbs., was immediately taken to the NICU, where he continues to grow stronger

A couple from western North Carolina experienced two major events on the same day: the birth of their first child and the arrival of Hurricane Helene.

At 1:41 a.m. local time on Sept. 27, Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard welcomed son Phoenix, who was born 10 weeks early at Mission Hospital in Asheville as the deadly storm battered the Carolinas.

Needless to say, when their son grows up, "he's going to have quite the story to tell," Dillard, 34, tells PEOPLE.

Phoenix was due to arrive in December, according to his parents. But on Sept. 21, Crowe, who was 29 weeks pregnant at the time, began experiencing contractions that initially felt like abdominal pain.

“I was waking up several times through the night,” Crowe, 28, recalls. The next day, she felt even worse and she knew it was time to seek help. "I was like, ‘Okay, I got to go. Something's going on.’ And that's when we went to Cherokee Hospital and they ran some tests and they figured out my water was breaking," she says.

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

Because Cherokee Hospital was not equipped for NICU babies, Crowe was driven via ambulance to Asheville's Mission Hospital, which was about an hour away.

“It seemed like forever,” says Dillard.

“I was scared,” Crowe adds, “because he was way too early."

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Initially, the couple says the impending hurricane wasn't a big worry. "We heard about it,” says Crowe, “but we never thought it was going to get that bad."

For the next couple of days, Crowe was monitored at the hospital. Then on Thursday, Sept. 26, Crowe experienced contractions that kept getting worse. The doctor "went to check her to see if she was dilated or anything like that,” says Dillard. “And right before they were starting the exam, her water completely broke.”

<p>Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard</p> Baby Phoenix, born on Sept. 27, 2024

Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard

Baby Phoenix, born on Sept. 27, 2024

About 10-15 minutes after she went into the hospital’s labor and delivery room, Crowe gave birth to Phoenix, who weighed 2 lbs., 9 oz.

"At first it was a little nerve-wracking,” Dillard remembers, “because with a preemie baby, they didn't immediately make him cry. They wanted to wait a few seconds. They wanted to clean him up and check everything. Jewelia kept saying, ‘Why ain't he crying?’ ”

“I started crying,” says Crowe. “I was so scared.” Fortunately, Phoenix did cry and was immediately taken to the NICU, but not before Crowe had a few minutes to hold him.

As if Phoenix’s birth wasn’t dramatic enough, both Crowe and Dillard soon heard the sound of a transformer exploding and then the power went out. “I mean, it sounded almost like a gunshot, just a real loud boom outside the window," Dillard says.

Related: Mom Remembers Giving Birth During 2023 Father's Day Storm: 'Special' but 'Wild Circumstances'

Although the power came back seconds later, the couple soon realized that the hurricane wasn't an ordinary storm.

“That's when we really saw the rain and the wind,” says Dillard. “In the labor and delivery room, you had a window behind you and you could see a light pole outside just swaying and the trees that were right there in the parking lot…It was awful. It was horrible.”

When it came time to name their baby, the couple already had "Phoenix" in mind. Still, that didn't stop a nurse from asking if they wanted to call a weather-related audible.

“After I gave birth, one of the nurses said, ‘I thought you were going to name the baby ‘Helene,' " recalls the new mom. "And I said, ‘No, I'm not doing that.’ ”

<p>Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard</p> Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard with their new baby Phoenix, born on Sept. 27, 2024

Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard

Jewelia Crowe and Samuel Dillard with their new baby Phoenix, born on Sept. 27, 2024

Related: First-Time Mom Gave Birth to Baby as Hurricane Ian Hit Florida: 'We Need to Do This Right Now'

Crowe was discharged from the hospital on Oct. 1, and ever since, the couple has been visiting the NICU ever day to check in on their son, whose weight is now up to 3 lbs.

For now, although he's continuing to grow, his parents say there's no definite time table on him coming home.

“His lungs are still premature,” Lianne Fagnant, Nursing Director for Mission Hospital's NICU, tells PEOPLE, sharing that the newborn still needs to use a CPAP machine, as well as a feeding tube.

“He's definitely on the right course and doing everything that we would expect him to do at his age, but he's got a little ways to go," adds the nurse.

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Dillard and Crowe, whose home didn't sustain much damage, say they're grateful for the care the whole family has received.

“I had a wonderful nurse,” adds Crowe. “She was one of the best I ever had. “She was a night shift nurse, but she stood by my side during that whole pregnancy. She was in a different hallway and she said, ‘No, I'm going with her.’ "

"You would never know that all this crazy stuff was going on outside," adds Dillard. "They kept it running smoothly."

To learn more about how to help with relief, recovery and rebuilding efforts from Hurricane Helene, click here.

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