A routine police patrol in New York City turned into an unexpected delivery room when officers helped a mother give birth just outside her apartment building.
Kashanna Legette had planned to reach the hospital before her baby arrived. But on February 13, her daughter decided to come much sooner.
Legette said everything happened very fast.
“I have to go downstairs to try to get to the hospital. Then I didn’t make it to the hospital,” she said, recalling the moment she realized she would not get there in time.
As the pain grew stronger, help arrived in the form of police officers who were working nearby. They quickly moved in to assist her.
Officer Katerin Villar checked the situation and noticed the contractions were very close together. It was clear the baby would arrive before medical workers could reach the scene.
Other officers stayed close to the mother. They held her hands, helped her stay calm, and reminded her to breathe while the birth took place outside the building.
Among them was Officer Keanu Phillip, who is expecting a child of his own. He said he simply responded the way he would want someone to help his own family.
Another officer, Roddmy Remy, removed his jacket and wrapped the newborn girl in it to keep her warm after she was born.
The act left a deep mark on the new mother. To show her thanks, she later chose Remy as her daughter’s middle name.
“That was beautiful,” she said about the moment he wrapped the baby.
Remy said he did not expect the gesture.
“When I went back to the hospital to pick up my jacket and the mom told me the name, and I was, I was in shock, and the first thing I did, I’m like, ‘Can I take a picture with you because this is probably the coolest thing that’s gonna happen in my career,’” he said.
The officers had been stationed nearby to prevent crime in the area. Instead, they became the first people to welcome baby Zanovia into the world.
What started as an emergency on a cold street ended with a healthy child, a grateful mother, and a moment the officers say they will remember for the rest of their lives.
By: Paisley Rae Thompson