AN expectant father got to witness the birth of his son thanks to the kindness of a man he had never met before and the power of social media.

Ryan Groom, from Blackburn, was woken in the early hours of Tuesday morning when fiancée Tara-Louise Spencer went into an early labour.

Thinking fast, Mr Groom called their midwife and an ambulance, which arrived in a matter of moments to whisk Miss Spencer to Burnley General Hospital.

But new regulations introduced to reduce the spread of the coronavirus meant Mr Groom couldn’t go with his partner in the ambulance and without a car, was unable to drive himself.

After ringing around several taxi firms and even trying to wake friends in the middle of the night, Mr Groom began to lose hope that he’d see the birth of his son.

However in a slight panic and trying to think how he could get across to Burnley, he turned to Facebook and posted a request on the Blackburn Life – Local Coronavirus Support Group.

Within moments a man Mr Groom had never met before - Aeman Ali Afzal, from Blackburn - got in touch.

After double checking it wasn’t a prank, he jumped in his car, picked Ryan up from his home and drove him to Burnley so he could see the birth of his new baby and be by his partner's side.

Mr Groom said: “It was all a bit of a blur, and I can’t even remember the journey.

“I jumped out at Burnley General Hospital, got lost trying to find the right place to go, and after some amazing help from the NHS staff, got there in the nick of time.”

Jack Arron Groom was born early this morning and mother and baby are both doing well.

Mr Groom added: “It just shows that at difficult times, the community really pulls together, and I can’t thank Aeman enough for offering to help me and get me to the hospital, so I didn’t miss one of the most important events of my life.

“Some people are truly amazing.”

Speaking to the Lancashire Telegraph, dad-of-one Mr Afzal said he didn't think twice about doing all he could to help the young family.

He said: "When I saw the message go on the group, it seemed like the most natural thing in the world to just get in touch and see if I could help.

"I like to help people and would have done it for anybody - I don't think I've done anything particularly special.

"I'm a dad of a little girl myself and the thought of Ryan not being there for the birth of his baby really pulled at my heart strings."

The two men now plan to stay in touch, with Mr Afzal saying he was looking forward to going around to meet Ryan's newest family member when it's safe to do so.

The film-maker said: "The response on Facebook has been a bit wild - so many people are getting in touch to say what a wonderful thing I've done, but I'm sure there are plenty of people who would have done the same thing if they were in my position."