Maeve is first Irish baby of 2019, born seconds past midnight

The Republic’s first baby of the new year was born at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda, at three seconds after midnight on New Year’s Day.

Baby Maeve, whose parents Michelle Montague and Simon Cox are from Kilmessan, Co Meath, weighed in at 3.28kg (7lbs 4oz). She is a first child for the couple and staff at the hospital said this was the first time Our Lady of Lourdes had delivered the first baby of the year.

In second place, arriving just one second later, was Amelia O’Brien who was born at Dublin’s Coombe hospital at four seconds past midnight to parents Leanne Farrell and Alan O’Brien of Clondalkin.

Amelia, who weighed 3.17kgs (7lbs), is the couple’s third child and a little sister to brothers Alfie and Charlie.

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The Coombe had a very busy start to the new year with three births in the first 30 minutes and five births in the first two and a quarter hours.

At the National Maternity Hospital, a girl, as yet unnamed, was born to Natasha Philpott from Co Wicklow at 27 seconds past midnight.

The hospital saw two further births in the first minutes of the year, one at 40 seconds past midnight, the other 15 minutes later. Details of these babies and their parents were not immediately available.

It was also busy night at Cork University Maternity Hospital where a boy and a girl were among the first children to be born in Ireland in 2019.

The first baby to be born on New Year’s Day at CUMH was a boy born to Marie and Niall O’Brien, of Ardmore, Co Waterford, at four minutes past midnight. The baby weighed in at 3.42kg (7lb 8oz) and the couple have yet to reveal his name but he will be a brother to their other child, Charlie.

It was also a night of celebration for Co Cork couple Joe and Mairead Flynn from Mitchelstown, with Maireád giving birth to baby Bláthnaid at 16 minutes past midnight at CUHM. Bláthnaid weighed in at 3.72kg (8lbs 3oz) and is the couple’s second child.

In Kerry, a boy was the first to be born in 2019, at the University Hospital Tralee, when he arrived at 7.40am.

In Co Clare, Conor and Aisling McKenna, from Miltown Malbay became first-time parents to the first baby born in 2019 in the midwest region. Mary, weighing 3.2kgs (7lbs 5oz), was born at 2.20am at University Maternity Hospital Limerick.

In University Hospital Waterford a girl was born at 4.37am. Further details were not available.

In Co Westmeath, a boy was born in Midlands Regional Hospital, Mullingar at 21 minutes past midnight, while in Portlaoise, a boy was born at 1.06am.