Baby Placed in First Safe Haven Baby Box in Tennessee — Just 30 Minutes After Birth | Gatekeeper

A baby has been placed in Tennessee’s first Safe Haven baby drop box just 30 minutes after giving birth.

Safe boxes were installed at the Knoxville Fire Department in February.

Once a mother places her baby in the box, a staff member is alerted via a silent alarm system and can retrieve the baby.

Staff called an ambulance and took the baby to a local hospital.

KFD Assistant Principal Mark Wilbanks said in a statement he was pleased the new system could help parents in crisis who don’t know what to do with their babies.

“The overall goal of this box is to be a resource to our community, that a mother or parent who is in crisis and doesn’t know what to do with a child, has a place to go,” Wilbanks said, according to A report from Breitbart News.

“It may sound a little hard to say but we don’t want them to put the child in the trash, we would rather they put the child in this box where it is safe and have a chance,” Wilbanks continued. “So this is simply put, this is a resource for the community and we were pleased to find it useful within three months of its installation.”

The box contains a resource pack for parents to take with them and allows them to drop off their baby anonymously.

“When they closed the door, it only took a minute for the station to go alert, it was part of the anonymity of the box itself, it indirectly alerted us to the fact that there was a baby in the box, and it gave the person time to leave the fire station without we know who they are,” Wilbanks said.

The box is “weight sensitive and has a magnetic auto-lock that activates when something is placed inside.” It also heats up to 85 degrees quickly, keeping babies warm until a member of staff arrives.