By Tim Bonfield
Enquirer staff writer

Sixteen years from now, when Morgan Sanaa Porter is old enough to drive herself down Interstate 71, just south of the Norwood Lateral, she will have quite a story to tell.

Lashyia Porter of Loveland and her husband Damon sit with their baby, Morgan Sanaa. (Enquirer photo/ERNEST COLEMAN)

She'll be able to point to the emergency lane and tell her friends, "That's where I was born, right there in the front seat of my parents' Toyota 4-Runner."

Morgan was born healthy - and a bit ahead of her Sept. 16 due date - as her father, Damon Porter, tried to weave his way through Friday morning rush-hour traffic.

He was trying to get from Loveland to Christ Hospital. But at about 7:55 a.m., little Morgan entered the world, weighing 7 pounds, 4 ounces. She was born so fast, her mother, Lashyia Porter, estimates spending less than 45 minutes in labor.

"I was planning to go into work," she said. "But as we were getting ready for work, my water broke."

Damon said Lashyia was remarkably calm, though it was a wonder he didn't crash. He was still driving when he saw Morgan's head begin to crown. By the time he could pull over, the baby was "totally out," he said.

"I apologize to all those drivers out there who I might have cut off in traffic," he said.

After the birth, the Porters called 911. A paramedic helped deliver the placenta and cut the cord roadside. Then mother and child were taken to the hospital.

Christ Hospital says about five out of 3,500 babies born there each year appear before Mom can get to the hospital.

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E-mail tbonfield@enquirer.com