“Couple Devastated by Baby’s Death Welcomes Quadruplets One Year Later
A couple whose newborn son died just hours after birth found hope again when they were blessed with quadruplets less than a year later.
**Lorraine Cusack, 35, and her husband **Johnny Byrne, 38, are now the proud parents of four “rainbow babies,” born in December 2020 at **Coombe Women & Infants University Hospital in **Dublin. The couple say they were left in “shock and disbelief” when Lorraine discovered she was pregnant again less than four months after the heartbreaking loss of their first child.

Their son **Dylan Byrne died just nine hours after he was born in January the previous year.
“Our little boy Dylan passed away when he was only nine hours old,” Lorraine recalled. “It was absolutely devastating. He was our first baby, and we had been trying for about a year to get pregnant.”
Lorraine said her pregnancy had been smooth, with no sickness or complications, and all scans appeared normal. Doctors even allowed her to go three days past her due date before inducing labor.
“When he was born he didn’t cry,” she said. “We knew straight away something was wrong. He couldn’t clear his lungs and was taken straight to intensive care.”
Doctors later explained that Dylan had died from Meconium Aspiration Syndrome, a condition that occurs when a newborn inhales amniotic fluid mixed with meconium while gasping for air. While most babies can cough it up, a small percentage cannot clear their lungs.
“We were able to spend time with him for a few days in the hospital,” Lorraine said. “We already had his name chosen. I remember thinking as we went to the hospital that we’d be leaving with our baby. Even when they took him away, we still believed he would be okay.”
Despite the heartbreak, the couple decided they wanted to try again. Just four months later, Lorraine discovered she was pregnant.
“For me, I was desperate to have another baby,” she said. “I just wanted to hold a child in my arms.”
Because of their previous loss, doctors classified the pregnancy as high risk and closely monitored Lorraine. During an early eight-week scan—while Johnny waited outside due to strict **COVID‑19 restrictions—Lorraine received astonishing news.
The sonographer first detected one baby and a heartbeat. Then another. Then a third.
“And then she moved the scanner again and said there was a fourth heartbeat,” Lorraine said. “I was in total shock. I couldn’t believe it. I remember saying, ‘Four babies?’ It felt like someone telling me aliens had landed in the back garden.”
Doctors later confirmed she was expecting quadruplets. Two of the babies were identical and shared the same amniotic sac, which meant the pregnancy carried additional risks, including Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome.
Still, Lorraine found that pandemic lockdown had one unexpected benefit: it allowed her to stay safely at home for most of the pregnancy.
“By the end, I was the size of a house,” she joked. “We always knew the babies would be premature. The latest doctors planned to deliver them was 32 weeks.”
A planned cesarean section had been scheduled for December 11, but during a routine scan on December 4, doctors noticed a problem with the umbilical cord and decided to deliver the babies immediately.
Lorraine arrived at the hospital early that morning, and three hours later the babies were born just minutes apart.

Nathan was born first at 11:40 a.m., weighing 3 lb 15 oz. His identical brother Cooper arrived one minute later with the same weight. Erin followed, weighing 2 lb 13 oz, and Eve was born moments later at 2 lb 12 oz.
Although the babies initially did well, Eve later developed a blood infection and a clot, spending nearly half of her first three months in the hospital.
“With changing COVID rules, Johnny wasn’t allowed to visit her for a while,” Lorraine said. “That was probably the hardest time. It felt wrong leaving the other babies at home to go to the hospital, but it also felt wrong leaving her there and going home.”
Finally, on January 29, Eve was able to join her siblings at the family home in Ballycullen, south Dublin, completing the Byrne family.
Life with four newborns is hectic, with around 24 bottles and more than 26 diaper changes every day, but Lorraine and Johnny say they are completely in love with their babies.
“The boys look like my side of the family, and the girls look like Johnny,” Lorraine said. “The boys are identical so it’s hard to tell them apart. Cooper is the biggest and the most relaxed, while Nathan is a bit more dramatic.”
Even with their joy, the couple say their first son is never far from their thoughts.
“Dylan is always in our minds,” Lorraine said. “As wonderful as everything is now, there will always be one missing.”
“It’s only been a year, and we are still grieving. But after something so tragic, to have something so wonderful happen… these little babies are our rays of sunshine.””