Like a scene from a horror film, Damien Tilly spotted a lone car seat sitting in the driveway just inside a home's gate. Inside, a helpless 2-month-old was shivering and crying, skin red from the cold.
It was nearly 8:30 p.m. on December 10, and Damien was heading home after spending a long day searching for work. As he made his way along, his wary thoughts were interrupted by a chorus of neighborhood dogs howling.
His interest piqued, he stopped for a moment and realized a baby's cries were mingled among the howls. He realized the sounds were coming from a seemingly abandoned car seat situated in one of the homes' driveways.
“It was pretty cold — I mean the baby was cold. Flush red," recalls Tilly in the video below. "It was out there for like an hour, total.”
The temperature teetered the border of 50 degrees, though the cold, windy conditions weren't the main concern for Damien. "This is a mountain area," he explains. "There’s coyotes, mountain lions, all sorts of things here. Bobcats. It’s pretty rough."
He made several attempts in getting the attention of the home owner, but after about 20 minutes he gave up and called 911 instead.
Officers discovered the father of the infant inside with his three other children, all under the age of 4.
Though it hasn't been determined if the dad left his child outside in the cold accidentally, the authorities confirmed that the inside of the family's home reflected neglect and deemed it unsafe for children.
The dad has been charged with child endangerment and is being held. The mom, who had dropped her children off with him earlier, is just grateful for the Good Samaritan who saved her baby's life.
Please SHARE this incredible story with your friends and family.
Image Source: Flckr / Paul Sableman
