First Safe Haven Baby Box installed in East Texas
PALESTINE, Texas ( KETK ) — A safe haven box in Palestine has been installed and is expected to be fully operational after testing and training is completed.
The box is located at Palestine's Fire Station 1 on 611 Avenue A St. that will provide an anonymous way for parents in crisis to surrender their children to first responders.
How the Safe Haven law works in Texas
When fully operational, a mother can open the box anonymously and place the baby inside. The box will trip a silent alarm and will lock after the baby is placed inside. Sixty seconds later, firefighters will hear a loud alarm and will retrieve the baby and perform medical care. Firefighters will then follow their protocol to ensure the child is in the proper care.
Sue Tingle, an Anderson county grandmother, spent more than 300 days raising approximately $23,000 to bring baby boxes to East Texas. Tingle knows firsthand the impact it can have on families as her granddaughter was adopted after being surrender at a baby box in Indiana.
"They weren't able to conceive and they were blessed with her basically at birth, she still had a cord attached, " Tingle said. "She was dropped off and then medically treated and placed with an emergency placement family while the permanent family was located. My son in law and daughter, were the family that they picked," Tingle said.
Tingle said her desire to install a baby box was also fueled by the overturn of Roe v. Wade in 2022. She believes baby boxes will be needed and in the current political climate and should be everywhere in Texas.
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"There's a lot of circumstances and things that can cause someone to want to surrender a baby. It's the hardest decision that any woman is ever going to make," Tingle said.
The new safe haven law, also known as the Baby Moses Law in Texas also allows parents to give up their babies at certain medical facilities.
"I pray that we never need it, that it never gets used, but if it we need it, it's there," Tingle said.
There are three other safe haven boxes in Texas in Lubbock, Corsicana and Abilene. When tests are finished at the Palestine location, an event will be held to bless the box.
