A pregnant woman is outraged after the municipality fined her for briefly leaving her car in a restricted zone while she was having painful contractions.
Abby Kernahan, 37, was struck by painful Braxton-Hicks contractions in Randwick, Sydney’s east, on December 20 when she was 39 weeks pregnant.
Even though the visual merchandiser was near her home, the painful contractions prevented her from driving.
“I definitely couldn’t drive – it wouldn’t have been smart or safe to drive,” she told Daily Mail Australia.
‘I stopped, I wasn’t on a main road, my hazard lights were on and I knew people could be getting around me.
Abby Kernahan, 37, (pictured with daughter Isla) suffered painful contractions from Braxton-Hicks when she was 39 weeks pregnant and could no longer drive. She was forced to park in a restricted zone until it was safe to drive
The mother was fined $302 in the post five weeks later, but when she contacted Revenue NSW with details of why she was parked in the exclusion zone (pictured), they told her it was not a ‘medical emergency’.
“It was the cafe in our apartment building, I thought maybe I should leave my keys there and go to the hospital.”
Mrs. Kernahan, who had gone into labor earlier that day, knew that if two to three contractions occurred within ten minutes, she would have to act.
“I got out of my car and the contraction went away,” she said.
“I told myself I’m going to wait here for five to 10 minutes and if they keep coming I’m going to worry.”
Fortunately, they were under control and the mother was able to drive away after less than ten minutes.
According to Health Direct, Braxton-Hicks contractions are also known as “false labor” due to their intensity, but “do not lead to labor and birth.”
With her daughter Isla, born on December 28, the mother was surprised to receive a $302 fine five weeks after being forced to park her car.
‘I thought, no, this can’t be that day. “I was more surprised than anything,” she said.
Ms Kernahan disputed the fine and explained her situation, but Revenue NSW refused to budge.
Ms Kernahan was parked for less than ten minutes (pictured) and did not obstruct other traffic. The mother said the ranger should have come to see if there was a medical emergency; they could have provided assistance
Her $302 fine was reviewed and it was said that her painful pregnancy symptoms did not qualify as a medical emergency. The mother from Sydney wants pregnancies to be taken into account, because ‘wild’ things can happen to women
“I sent all the information and they sent back a letter and pictures of my car and said labor is not a medical emergency,” she said.
‘Then I was really angry. Should I have the baby? Is that where we are?’
The mother said it feels like it’s a clear example of increasing revenue as the ranger didn’t come by to see what the situation was.
“Despite having the emergency lights on, they didn’t come by to check if it was a real medical emergency,” she said.
‘No one came by and said, “Hey, what’s going on?”
Ms Kernahan said it rained heavily that day and believes the ranger did not even get out of their car.
“I’d put money on it,” she said.
‘Because they no longer hand out paper fines, they can simply take photos from their car. The photos they sent me were all taken from the same angle.”
The mother is said to have since received a call from Revenue NSW informing her the fine had been withdrawn.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Revenue NSW for comment.