Safe Haven Baby Box

The Hot Springs Central Fire Station, 310 Broadway Avenue, is now home to Hot Springs's first Safe Haven Baby Box.

The Arkansas Safe Haven Law (A.C.A. § 9-34-202) allows a mother to anonymously surrender her baby age 30 days or younger at any manned fire station. A baby box is a device that establishes a protected environment for infants that is accessible from outside of the fire station. Mothers who can no longer care for their infants would place the child inside the baby box via an outside door. The interior of the box is a climate-controlled environment inside the fire station that is designed to protect and meet the child’s needs. Once placed in the box, an alarm would sound at the fire station and the police department to notify first responders. Firefighters would retrieve the child, perform a patient assessment and meet the child’s immediate healthcare needs. The child would be transported via ambulance to a local hospital for evaluation. Ultimately, the child would be placed in the state’s foster care system prior to being eligible for adoption.

Special thanks to the following for making this possible:

Dayton Myers for spearheading the project and the Knights of Columbus Hot Springs Council 6419 for overseeing installation and maintenance costs; Cory Cangelosi and New Life Church for funding the purchase of the baby box; Dr. Mark Larey for funding the installation of the box; and Massanelli Construction, Inc. for their generous bid to complete the installation.