Once upon a time I worked as an Uber driver. One of my favorite aspects of the job was the series of surprises every day brought. On one fare you might offer a pep talk to someone on the way to propose to their sweetheart. On the next you might coach a college student through tying their tie for their first job interview. And I suspect New York City taxi driver Luis J. Leonardo feels the same way. But I’ll bet he never in a million years imagined he’d coach a couple through “a natural birth in the car.”

Leandro was working a regular early morning shift when a call came in for a Bushwick fare. The woman was very pregnant and his suspicions were confirmed when they requested the Brooklyn Methodist Hospital in Park Slope. But as Leandro drove, he realized she wasn’t just pregnant: she was having contractions.

The driver quickly adapted to the situation, driving as quick as possible and advising the expecting mother as she groaned with each contraction: “You gotta breathe mommy.” He knew that her contractions might continue for hours before she gave birth and never suspected the baby would arrive in his back seat.

The mother said, “She’s literally coming out!” Leandro good-naturedly repeated, “Yeah, but you have to breathe.” Then the woman reached between her legs and said, “I had it in my hand!” At that point Leandro thought, Oh, she’s serious! He turned around and realized she was indeed giving birth in his back seat.

Instead of panicking, the cabbie again adapted to the situation. He advised, “Let’s switch your legs Mommy, spread your legs ma’am.” When the father freaked out and said, “I don’t know how to do this!” the cab driver he urged the him to help out, “C’mon boss, pull it out boss. Do the magic!” After the baby finally emerged he added, “Just clean the face, take the bag off the face, boom! We’re Gucci!”

Leandro’s dashcam footage shows how incredibly clear-headed he remains, navigating stop-and-go NYC traffic smoothly while continuing to calm the couple and instruct them in giving birth.

What’s more, the driver cheered on the father, “That’s it, hold your kid, hold your kid…You got the s— done.” He of course celebrated the mother and child too: He said, “God bless the baby.” And he said of the mother, “She’s strong man!” Then he turned on the dome light so the couple could see their new baby.

When the couple continued to stress about their new baby he said, “She was crying, she’s good. Just hold the baby, clean it up, go to the hospital, check it in.”

Leandro did warn, “Don’t get the seat messy!” And considering his cab–with its leather interior–is his livelihood, I don’t blame him. He added, “You better hook me up with a little extra for the car wash, man.” It was the mother who assured him, “We got you!” They not only compensated him, but invited him to a celebratory block party later that summer.

The couple said the little girl is named Naomi. In an interview Leandro made light of the entire situation. “A call came up, went to pick them up, the female went into labor, I picked up two and dropped off three — simple as that.”

What a hero! I can’t imagine a cab driver better suited to the situation. How did Leandro stay so calm? He said that in his eight-year career this is the third time someone has given birth in his car. The couple–and their new baby–were sure lucky that fate paired them with Leandro. You can see the dashcam footage (Warning: birth and all) embedded below.