INDIANAPOLIS — The Wayne Township Fire Department has become the first fire department in the nation to offer Safe Haven Baby Boxes at all its fire houses.
The department, which previously installed a baby box at one of its five stations, recently secured funding from local donors to add the devices to its four remaining stations.
“The mission of the Wayne Township Fire Department is to save lives, and these new baby boxes will help to do that, giving parents a safe, judgement free way to surrender their newborns,” said Bardon. “I want to thank our partners, whose generous donations made this possible. These baby boxes have and will continue to save lives.”
In March of 2023 a baby was surrendered using the baby box at Fire Station 82, located on West Washington Street.
Donations for the purchase and installation of the additional Safe Haven Baby Boxes were made by the American Legion Post 64 (Station 81), the George Day Memorial Foundation (Station 83), Bob Quigley (Station 84) and the Peterman Family Foundation (Station 85).
Plaques honoring the donors will be installed at each station.
What is a Safe Haven Baby Box?
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Baby boxes are safe incubators that have alarm systems, so 911 is notified as soon as a baby is placed inside. The baby boxes also have heating and cooling features.
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Once the infant is collected by first responders, they're taken to the nearest medical facility to be evaluated.
Infants surrendered under Indiana's Safe Haven Law are placed in the custody of the state's Department of Child Services after they are released from the hospital. The process then begins to find an adoptive family within 30-45 days.
Safe Haven Hotline
The boxes make the news, but the Safe Haven Hotline is where most of these journeys begin.
SHBB staffs a 24-hour Safe Haven hotline (1-866-99BABY1), so parents can talk to trained professionals and get more information about their options for surrendering or how to get assistance to help them be able to care for their child.
The SHBB hotline is staffed by licensed counselors.
