Four Colorado cops helped deliver a set of triples in the snow — with an assist from a common kitchen item — after rushing to the aid of a woman screaming from a neighbor’s front porch earlier this month.
Officers with the Greeley Police Department found the 24-year-old mother in labor on April 18, more than three months early, in the front of the home and quickly launched into action, authorities and the woman’s boyfriend said.
While the cops quickly called for medics, they heard “very faint” wailing and saw that a baby boy was born but turning blue, police said.
One officer found bread ties nearby to help fasten off the umbilical cord while another officer quickly collected towels and blankets to keep the mother warm while a mixture of snow and rain fell at around 3:30 a.m.
A third officer tied the umbilical cord and cut it and the fourth officer rushed the newborn to his patrol car to keep him warm on the 32-degree morning, police said.
But once the baby reached the vehicle, he stopped breathing, leading the officer to give him CPR and chest compressions so he would have “a fighting chance of survival” until paramedics arrived and took over, Greeley police said Friday.
A second baby boy was then born as officers tended to the mother and waited for more help. The umbilical cord was snipped off and baby number two was taken to an ambulance as medics were still working on the first child.
Another ambulance eventually reached the home and took the mother to the hospital where she underwent surgery and delivered the last baby – also a boy, cops said.
“Officers were ecstatic to learn that all three babies had strong heartbeats and were being taken care of in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU),” Greeley police said. “We believe that the woman went into labor while home alone, but her phone had died so she attempted to make it to a neighbor’s home to call 911.”
The triplets’ father, Eric Mayeda, introduced the three boys as Burt Isao Leonard-Mayeda, Kikutaro Alan Leonard-Mayeda and Billy Bob Leonard-Mayeda on social media.
“They were early which was expected but everyone is good and as healthy as can be expected,” he said on Facebook next to photos of the tiny babies in the NICU.
Mayeda told McClatchy News his girlfriend, Tiffany Leonard, was staying at her mom’s house when she went into labor early in the morning. With her phone dead, she walked to her neighbors’ house a block away where they woke up and called 911, he said.
“Your babies are being born on my front porch!” Mayeda said the neighbors called and told him.
The triplets’ initial due date was July 25, he told the news outlet.
Police Chief Adam Turk commended the officers for their efforts.
“We expect our officers to do great work in our community every day, it is engrained [sic] in our core values,” Turk said in a statement. “Even with that lofty expectation, I was amazed at the teamwork, ingenuity, and care our officers provided to this mother and her three new baby boys.
“The success of this call is a success in our officers, our training, and our partnerships with other public safety agencies in the area.”
