NICU babies from Corpus Christi evacuated to Cook Children's

FORT WORTH, Texas - Several babies who were in the NICU in Corpus Christi were evacuated to Cook Children’s Hospital in Fort Worth ahead of Hurricane Harvey’s anticipated landfall.

The hanger at Fort Worth’s Meacham Airport stayed busy most of Thursday night for what is called Teddy Bear Transport program. A total of ten babies in not so good health were flown from Driscoll Medical Center in Corpus Christi out of harm's way. The final two babies arrived early Friday morning.

"They were their 10 most acute babies,” explained Cheryl Petersen with Cook Children’s. “All of them require some technology so most are on ventilators have other forms of special needs."

Staff at Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth prepared the NICU rooms, where the babies will stay until it's safe to return.

"Whether it's IV therapy, whatever the therapy is we need, all babies will be on a monitor,” Petersen said. “So we are prepared to do that so we are setting up rooms as we speak to accommodate everyone."

The NICU rooms are also equipped with a pullout bed so parents can stay with their little ones if they choose. There’s also a Ronald McDonald House in North Texas that can also provide accommodations for the parents from the Texas coast.

For others in Harvey's path, help is on the way from the Salvation Army regional headquarters in Arlington.

"We're taking shelter supplies, water, feeding supplies, things that they're gonna need in the immediate aftermath of the flooding,” said Alvin Migues with the Salvation Army.

Eighteen-wheelers are headed to Galveston, Texas City, Freeport and Victoria.

"People are very resilient. They want to recover. They want to recover quickly,” Migues said. “And we're there to do what we can to help them with that process."