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Infant safely rescued from baby box in Michigan City

MICHIGAN CITY, Ind. (WANE) — The Indiana Department of Child Services is caring for an infant girl who was dropped off at a Safe Haven Baby Box in Michigan City late Tuesday evening.

According to Safe Haven Baby Boxes INC, the time it took between the baby being dropped off and first responders taking it into their care was less than five minutes. The non-profit organization says so far in 2017 there have been six cases of infants being surrendered to baby boxes in Indiana with zero cases of babies being illegally abandoned.

The way the baby box works is that when the outside door of the box is opened, a 911 call goes out. Once a child is placed inside the box, another alarm is sent. The outside door locks once it’s closed. There is a fire-retardant mat inside the box and it’s climate controlled, staying between 95 and 101 degrees.

The only other baby box besides the one in Michigan City according to the Safe Haven Baby Boxes INC website is located in Allen County at the Woodburn Fire Department.

Earlier this year, Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb signed a bill allowing the placement of baby boxes at hospitals throughout the state.