LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — An Arkansas woman living in a hotel while waiting for tornado insurance assistance got a surprise visitor a few days ago.
Tikira Wallace has been adjusting to her new normal in a Little Rock hotel after her mother's apartment got hit by the tornado on March 31.
Especially after she unexpectedly gave birth at 39 weeks pregnant to her son Eiress on April 23rd.
"The apartment complex itself is bad. It tore people's vehicles up, it tore a lot of it up. It did some damage," Mother, Tikira Wallace said.
Just two days after the tornado, the Red Cross placed Wallace and her family in a hotel room.
"They got me a whole bunch of stuff. They've been very helpful," Wallace explained.
Wallace explained that she went to the hospital for a few hours on April 23 but got discharged because they didn't think the birth would happen that day.
After she returned to the hotel, the pain set in and she went into labor.
"Overall experience. It was crazy. I have a crazy story to tell my son... hey Mom where was I born? Son, you were born in a hotel," she described.
Wallace also did so without any pain medication.
"It's not as bad as I thought it would be. But it didn't feel good," she said.
Wallace said she's not sure how it would've gone if it weren't for her new friend, Shay Sockwell, who was also staying in the hotel because of the tornado.
"I was like, can you please not leave me and she held my hands and she kept me calm the whole time," she added.
Sockwell ended up delivering baby Eiress with assistance from paramedics.
"The last thing I wanted was for it to be something wrong. So my whole goal was to stay calm. We're gonna get this baby out of here and everything was gonna be good," Sockwell explained.
After just 4 pushes, Eiress was born.
"I didn't know what I was doing or how I was gonna get it done. But it got done," Wallace said.
Now, Sockwell and Wallace call each other family.
"I'm the god mom. So yes, it's my baby too," Sockwell said.
They're bonding every single day in the hotel.
"Once all this is over and we do get placed I'm still gonna stay in contact and we got this family stuck together we can't separate," she said.
"I have the perfect support system. I have everything that I need. I just feel like he's a blessing," Wallace said.
Wallace said she looks forward to making memories with her son in a more permanent place.
"I'm just ready to begin life again with my baby," she added.
Nurses with Red Cross have been checking on the first-time mother and baby, making sure everyone is healthy and has what they need.
If you've been impacted by the tornado and need some help, contact 1-800 Red Cross.
