Officials in Andrew County are taking steps to protect newborns with the addition of a Safe Haven Baby Box after a tragic incident where a baby was found deceased near Mozingo Lake this summer. Safe Haven Baby Boxes are secure, temperature-controlled devices where parents in crisis can safely and anonymously surrender their newborns and are typically located outside of a fire station or hospital. Savannah Fire Department is looking to bring a Safe Haven Baby Box to the northwest region.
“You can drop off a child under 45 days old at any police station, fire station, sheriff's office or hospital without identifying yourself and without repercussions,” said Steve Smith, emergency management director at the Andrew County Fire Department. “The problem is, moms who are doing that are usually on drugs such as methamphetamine, fentanyl, whatever the case may be and are afraid of the repercussion for that or being revealed in general. The Safe Haven Box offers anonymity and that’s what we’re looking for by putting one here.
” There is currently only one Safe Haven Baby Box located in the state of Missouri at the Mehlville Fire House in St. Louis County. The closest one to area residents is located at the Fort Dodge Fire Department in Dodge, Iowa.
The placement of a Safe Haven Baby Box has been approved by the Savannah fire board to be housed at the fire station in Savannah, but the next step is raising enough money to have it installed, which is estimated at around $40,000.
