Pennsylvania mother gives birth to ‘Tesla baby’ while electric car was in autopilot
- Pennsylvania couple Yiran and Keating Sherry recounted their three month-old daughter Maeve Lily’s dramatic birth in the front seat of the couple’s Tesla
- Her journey into the world started on September 9 when Yiran had contractions in the middle of the night, the following morning her water broke
- With their son in the backseat, the parents set out for a 20 minute drive to the hospital while Yiran was crouched on the floor in front of the passenger seat
- Keating utilized the autopilot feature, still keeping his left hand on the wheel while tending to his wife, whose contractions were now at one minute apart
- When they pulled up to the hospital Yiran whispered, ‘Oh, my God, Keating. She’s out.’
- Luckily a pediatrician just happened to be outside the hospital who called on nurses to rush to the Telsa to cut the umbilical over the car’s front seat
A pregnant Pennsylvania woman gave birth in a Tesla after her husband put the electric car into autopilot and helped her deliver the baby before they reached the hospital.
Keating and Yiran Sherry’s newborn girl was nicknamed ‘Tesla baby’ by the nurses after the couple pulled up with their bundle of joy.
The couple recounted their now-three-month-old daughter Maeve Lily’s dramatic birth in the front seat of the Tesla after Yiran began having contractions in the middle of the night on September 9.
‘I knew,’ Yiran told the Philadelphia Inquirer. ‘I said to Keating, ‘Today’s the day, but I don’t think it’s happening anytime soon.”
The couple, who met while teaching at Rainbow Bridge International School in Shanghai, have a three-year-old son named Rafa and said they were more than ready to welcome a second child.
Later that morning at 8:30 am, the parents took it easy. Yiran said she did laundry and got their son ready for preschool.
When Keating put their son in the backseat of their car, he checked on his wife and found that her water had broken and knew it was time to take her to the hospital despite her insistence he take their son to school first.
With their son in the backseat, the parents set out for a 20-minute drive from their home in Wayne to Paoli Hospital, while Yiran was crouched on the floor in front of the passenger seat due to strong contractions.
To make things more complicated, the avenue leading to the hospital was packed with rush-hour traffic.
Keating utilized the Tesla’s autopilot feature, still keeping his left hand lightly on the steering wheel while tending to his wife, whose contractions were now one-minute apart, and checking on his son in the backseat.
‘She was squeezing my hand to the point where I thought she was going to shatter it,’ Keating told the Inquirer.
‘I was saying to Yiran: “OK, focus on your breathing.” That was advice to myself, as well. My adrenaline was pumping. I said, “Rafa, everything’s fine. Your baby sister is arriving.”‘
The short trip felt like an eternity and in between contractions Yiran glanced at the GPS to see how much longer they had to go, but their baby had other plans.
When they pulled up to the hospital, Yiran whispered, ‘Oh, my God, Keating. She’s out.’
Luckily a pediatrician happened to be outside the hospital, who called nurses to rush to the Telsa and cut the baby’s umbilical cord over the car’s front seat.
‘Once the pediatrician said, “She’s healthy. Congratulations,” that was quite the sigh of relief,’ Keating says.
Nurses at the hospital gave Maeve the apt nickname ‘Tesla baby’ and the parents considered giving her the middle name ‘Tess’ as a nod to her birth place but in the end they went with Lily as a tribute to Yiran’s mother.
The parents did joke that they would pass the car down to their baby girl.
‘I wouldn’t be too surprised if, in the year 2037, Maeve is getting her permit with that Tesla,’ Keating told the Inquirer.
