A homeless mother abandoned her newborn twins near dumpsters in Fairfield, Northern California after giving birth to them on the street - with only one of them surviving the heartbreaking ordeal in a county battling to curb its homelessness.

Police say the babies were discovered shortly after 4pm on Tuesday in the 300 block of Pittman Road in Fairfield, northeast of San Francisco.

One child died at the scene and the other was taken to a hospital in stable condition.

Police say a homeless woman who appeared to have just given birth was found nearby and detained before being taken to hospital for treatment.

Police in Fairfield, California, on Tuesday found two newborn twins abandoned next to these dumpsters on Pittman Road

Officers located the mother of the babies, one of whom has died, around the corner

Police on the scene said the woman appeared as if she had just given birth; she was detained and hospitalized

Fairlfield is located less than 50 miles northeast of San Francisco, which has emerged as the epicenter of a homelessness crisis in recent years.

According to a newly released report, San Francisco tallied about 8,000 homeless in its one-night count in January, up 17 per cent from 2017.

Other counties in California also saw double-digit increases, reflecting the state’s severe housing crunch.

Business owner Joe Frundl said the mom is homeless and had been using the bathroom at his pizzeria for the past couple of weeks.

Officials say they can’t keep pace with the number of people who become homeless in a city where the median sales price of a house hovers at $1.4million and median rent for a one-bedroom apartment is around $3,700.

According to a press release from the Fairfield Police Department, officers were told by a local business employee that the twins' mother delivered the babies on the sidewalk in broad daylight.

The first officer who responded to the scene immediately started life-saving efforts on one of the newborns and then turned care over to fire department paramedics.

The infant's twin was determined to have died prior to the officer’s arrival.

Temperatures in the city were in the mid-80s on Tuesday, according to data from AccuWeather.com.

A pharmacist at this wellness center found the woman sleeping on the doorstep overnight; he called 911 after he saw her rubbing her back in pain

Police searched the area and found the new mom around the corner from the dumpsters, on the sidewalk on Central Place.

'Based off her appearance, it was obvious she had recently given birth,' said Lt. Jausiah Jacobsen.

Joe Frundl, who co-owns Cenario's Pizza, tells KGO that the mother, who has not been named, is homeless and had been using the bathroom at his business for the past couple of weeks.

'It's heartbreaking, it's a very disturbing story,' Frundl said.

He said he last saw the woman on Monday night while she was walking in the area.

'I didn't know she was pregnant until my employees told me,' he added.

Lt. Jausiah Jacobsen said it was obvious from the mother's appearance that she had just delivered the babies

Frundl said he spoke to a pharmacist working next door who told him that the pregnant woman slept on his doorstep overnight.

The pharmacist called 911 when he saw the woman rubbing her back in apparent pain.

It is unclear at this time whether charges will be filed against the woman in connection to her baby's death.