Silke Jasso
An infant in Kentucky was the first to be placed in a “baby box” under a new state law that allows the anonymous abandonment of newborn babies. The “baby box” was located at the Bowling Green Fire Department, with the infant being retrieved by firefighters within 90 seconds, according to Monica Kelsey, the CEO and founder of Safe Haven Baby Boxes. The Bowling Green box had been operational for just two months before the first baby was dropped off.
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“This baby is healthy. This baby is beautiful. This baby is perfect,” Kelsey stated, adding that officials will now be searching for the child’s “forever home.”
Safe Haven Baby Boxes offers a solution for parents who are in distress, allowing them to anonymously abandon their newborns in a very secure location. These boxes are installed on the exterior walls of hospitals or public-safety buildings. They usually feature a locking mechanism that is triggered once a newborn is placed inside. There, the boxes activate a silent alarm to notify staff that a baby has been dropped off.
First Infant Anonymously Surrendered in ‘Baby Box’
In 2021, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear had signed a law that allows the use of “baby boxes” for newborns who are under 30 days old. According to the law, they must be located at 24/7 staffed police stations, fire departments, or hospitals.
“This child that was surrendered here was not abandoned. This child was legally, safely, anonymously and lovingly placed inside of the Safe Haven Baby Box. And that speaks volumes about the parents,” Kelsey went on to add.
The baby was the 24th in the US to be surrendered at one of the more than 130 baby box locations that have been established across nine states.
“This child was left safely and legally in this baby box so that the baby could be pulled from the other side by the firefighter,” Kelsey added. “The fire department did exactly what they were trained to do, and it worked flawlessly.”
