Baby boom continues via LRT

And then there were three.

When Julius Lubiano got into a coach of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Line 1 with his pregnant wife Lea Wednesday morning, he had no idea that he would be getting off the train with his newborn baby cradled in his arms.

The couple were on their way to the hospital for a checkup when Lea, who was due to give birth in the second week of August, went into labor at 9:40 a.m.

“She tried to stop the baby from coming but she just came out,” Lubiano said.

The baby, a girl who weighed 2.7 kilograms, was born inside the LRT coach with the help of their copassengers.

“We were fortunate there were other passengers who cared and knew what to do. We are happy that the delivery went smoothly and our baby was born without any complications,” he added.

According to the first-time parents, Lea experienced some bleeding the night before so they decided to go to Tondo General Hospital and Medical Center for a checkup in the morning.

Lubiano said that as soon as they were inside the train, Lea started to feel labor pains. “I started crying because I didn’t know what to do and I felt sorry for my wife and our baby. I wasn’t expecting the baby to be born inside the train,” he added.

When the couple alighted at the Blumentritt station, Lubiano was holding in his arms their firstborn.

LRT spokesperson Hernando Cabrera, meanwhile, said the couple were promptly assisted by LRT security guards Felix Eduva and Glen Salazar as well as Red Cross volunteers Mikaela San Luis and Solicitor Mercado.

He added that this was the second time this year that someone gave birth on the overhead train system.

“Every year, one to three mothers give birth in the LRT, there are others who start to go into labor or their water bag breaks,” Cabrera said.

At the same time, he clarified earlier rumors that children born on LRT trains were given lifetime free passes.

“We do not give rewards or financial assistance. What we provide is assistance for the mother to be brought to the hospital,” Cabrera said.

At press time, the Lubianos had yet to decide what to name their firstborn.

In the past three years, four babies have been delivered on the LRT Line 1. In May, 35-year-old Darlin Idio gave birth to a baby girl at 6:25 a.m. inside a coach, just minutes before the northbound train pulled into the station where she was supposed to get off.

In 2012, a boy and a girl were born separately to women who were both on their way to Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital.

In October 2010, 23-year-old Geraldine Mahinay gave birth to a son at the eastside platform of the Pedro Gil LRT Station. LRT security guard Elnora Castro helped her deliver her baby. With a report from Inquirer Research