FORT SMITH, Ark. — After months of planning, Fort Smith is now one of the latest cities in Arkansas with a Safe Haven Baby Box.
The box is outside Fire Station 11, located at 8900 Massard Road.
As the closest Baby Box to Oklahoma, this location will serve Fort Smith, the River Valley and surrounding areas.
The box allows mothers to surrender their babies anonymously.
"It's not that these women don't love their children, they absolutely love their children, they're just in a crisis that you and I may never understand, and this is giving them that option, that last resort option to keep their child safe and keep themselves from being prosecuted," said Monica Kelsey, founder and CEO of Safe Haven Baby Boxes.
A silent alarm notifies the station when a drop-off is made. The door locks automatically once it's shut, so there is no threat of anyone taking the baby after it's been placed inside the Baby Box location.
Right now, it's the only Baby Box in Fort Smith, but the hope is to expand the project to other fire stations soon.
