Troopers expecting to issue speeding ticket instead help expecting couple deliver baby

Pennsylvania State Troopers helped deliver a baby early Saturday inside a car they had pulled over near the Philadelphia International Airport, authorities said.

Tricia Snyder and her husband were speeding in their Mazda SUV, northbound on Interstate 95 toward the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, when police began pursuing the expecting couple, police said.

Once Trooper Peter Burghart pulled over the Snyders and he learned of the impending birth, he asked for medics and more units to come to the scene.

About 2:20 a.m., Trooper Jean Altomari delivered the baby, a girl, with Trooper Donald Foley assisting, police said.

Altomari untangled the umbilical cord wrapped around the baby's neck, police said. Foley assisted by cleaning the baby's face, nose and eyes with a sterile cloth and ensuring the infant's airway remained clear, police said.

Baby and mother were taken to HUP by paramedics, authorities said. HUP later released a statement saying that mother and child were "excellent," police said.

"Traffic stops are a regular occurrence out of my station," Burghart told 6ABC. "Every day, you either prepare yourself to save a life, take a life or give your own. It's very rare that you're going to be prepared to watch one come into this world."