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Woman surrenders newborn at Waco fire station, first time in history of city

Posted at 5:48 PM, Aug 09, 2017
and last updated 2017-08-09 19:16:36-04

A newborn baby girl was surrendered to a Waco fire station, the first time in the city's history. 

Waco Fire Chief Bobby Tatum said that at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, a woman entered the fire station located at 7600 Imperial Drive. The woman had a baby girl that was three days old. The woman told firefighters that she wanted to relinquish her parental rights.

Tatum said that the woman said it was a surprise pregnancy and she had given birth at home. Due to the surprise, the woman said she was unable to care for the child and had other children at home. 

Per the "Baby Moses Law," a parent can surrender children to a fire station, or a hospital, up to 60 days after birth. 

At the time of the surrender, the woman gave firefighters a bag with diapers and formula. The little girl was taken to the hospital for evaluation and a case work with Child Protective Services in East Texas came to take the child. 

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