A Southern California nurse who was a social media influencer and the wife of a Los Angeles firefighter died from a rare complication after giving birth to her son.
Hailey Okula, 33, had shared the struggles of her pregnancy with her nearly 470,000 followers on Instagram. She had dreamed of becoming a mother and after years of infertility, she became pregnant after undergoing IVF.
She and her husband, Matthew Okula, were thrilled about the new chapter in their lives when they found out they were welcoming a baby boy.
Hailey and Matt Okula are seen in family photos. (Okula Family)
Crew Okula is seen in a family photo. (Okula Family)
Hailey and Matt Okula are seen in family photos. (Okula Family)
Hailey Okula is seen in a photo from her Instagram page @rnnewgrads.
Matt Okula speaks to KTLA while holding baby Crew. (KTLA)
Hailey Okula is seen in a photo from her Instagram page @rnnewgrads.
Hailey Okula is seen in a personal photo. (Okula Family)
Hailey and Matt Okula are seen in family photos. (Okula Family)
A candlelight vigil will be held to honor Hailey Okula’s life in Huntington Beach on April 26, 2025. (Okula Family)
On March 29, Hailey went into labor and gave birth to their son, Crew, who they considered their “miracle baby.”
“We hear the baby cry and we were excited he was finally here,” Matt told KTLA’s Sara Welch. “She made a comment about how big he was. I grabbed her hand and said, ‘He’s beautiful and I will see you over there in a moment.’ We were so excited and then it took such a quick turn.”
Just minutes after delivering their son, Matt left the room and the unthinkable happened.
“It hadn’t been a minute or two later that the doctor came in and told me they were doing CPR and her heart stopped,” he said.
Hailey had suffered a rare pregnancy complication called amniotic fluid embolism which happens when amniotic fluid enters the mother’s bloodstream and can cause an unexpected allergic-like reaction and cardiac arrest.
On April 1, Matt shared the news of Hailey’s death on her Instagram page, saying in part:
“Hailey’s strength was unparalleled. Words can’t describe how badly we wanted to be parents. Hailey faced every hurdle with so much courage and love—even though her body went through so much, she never wavered.
Crew Okula is seen in a family photo. (Okula Family)
Though her time with us was tragically cut short, Hailey’s love for Crew was limitless, long before he entered this world. She would have been the most amazing mom. Her spirit, courage, and love will live on in our son, and through everyone whose lives she touched.”
Hailey was an emergency room nurse who was passionate about her career and wanted to help other nurses thrive in the industry. She founded RN New Grads, a program that helped support newly graduated nurses. Her Instagram page @rnnewgrads also provides educational resources and advice to help new nurses.
Matt said he never thought he would be a single father raising a newborn but said he is focused on doing the best job he can while working to raise awareness of the pregnancy dangers involving amniotic fluid embolism.
“It’s about 100 people a year in the United States that [amniotic fluid embolism] happens to,” Matt said. “That’s a lot of broken hearts and shattered families. Hailey would want to use this right now to see how we can figure out a way to not let this happen to other families.”
In the last moments he spent with his wife, Matt said he was “just talking to her about Crew and I just told her I’m going to be the best dad I can be for him.”
A GoFundMe page to help Hailey’s family with funeral expenses can be found here.
A candlelight vigil to honor Hailey’s life will take place on April 26 at SeaLegs at the Beach in Huntington Beach at 6:30 p.m.
