A baby was safely surrendered in Muscle Shoals, marking the first use of the area's Safe Haven Baby Box since its installation last year.

Firefighters at Muscle Shoals Fire Station Four were alerted around 8:30 p.m. last Wednesday, indicating a baby had been placed inside the box. Assistant Fire Chief Chris Hogeland was among those on the scene.

"We actually got a heads up on the hotline so we had about 30 minutes heads up that they were going to bring a baby," Hogeland said.

Safe Haven Baby Boxes, designed to provide a safe and anonymous way for parents to surrender their baby within 45 days of birth, noted that such advance notice is rare. Hogeland explained how the warning allowed the crew extra time to prepare.

"It was our first one so it was just a lot of unknowns. We practice and

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