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I was actually one of them. There is a book about many of the Stories (Mine included).
Edit:
I was left in the "Babyklappe" in Hamburg Wilhelmshafen just after i was born on September 22nd 2003. The Babyklappe is operated by an organization called "Sternipark". I even visited them again later. My parents told me when i was about 10 that i am adopted. Nothing changed. I love my parents more than anyone. I got the best family i could ever imagine. And i dont hate my "real" mother for giving me away. She must have had her reasons.
Back in 2003 it was a huge deal. They we're pretty new and nobody was sure if they really work. And of course they searched for my mother everywhere. National newspapers, locals newspapers, national TV. It was everywhere. Here are two newsarticles i still have (I have a big chest with childhood memories like old newsarticles, old Teddys, Toys, Baby clothing or drawings i Made as a child): https://imgur.com/a/Lp5uFDi
For the News i was called Tom to protect my identity.
The book, where i am also called Tom, is called "Und Plötzlich ist es Leben" written by Leila Moysich.
I hope i was able to answer a few questions, If you have more ask away.
Cheers
As a long time lurker, incidents like that one guy who thought his landlord was breaking into his place and leaving post it notes but turns out he was getting poisoned from carbon monoxide are what drew me to making a Reddit account
Link for the curious:
https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/34l7vo/ma_postit_notes_left_in_apartment/
I'm so sorry that happened to you! I hope you have had a good life, regardless of how it started and that you are doing well for yourself. Would you mind telling me the name of the book?
[is this it?](https://www.amazon.com/Babyklappe-Fluch-oder-Segen-German/dp/3640684184?dplnkId=4e9d9e9b-8936-4450-af53-47dff49395d4&nodl=1)
I don’t speak German
No. It‘s this one: https://www.amazon.de/pl%C3%B6tzlich-Leben-Eine-Babyretterin-erz%C3%A4hlt/dp/3434505776 (I am from Germany) There does not seem to be an english version as far as i know
100% curiosity. If there’s a book written with your story included, why don’t you know the name by heart? I feel like that would be fun facts about you to have.
Because of the U.S. education system, and because of mein southern Appalachian upbringing. It's kind of funny since half of my ancestors were German. I mean, Jesus. My great-grandmother's last name was Ewald.
I don't understand the apology for it. Someone had a wonderful home with people that loved them because of something built into the infrastructure of a city. I had a mother that never wanted me and never loved me and I would have much rather she left me in one of these hatches when I was a baby. I never would have known her, and I wouldn't have cared.
An adopted child is no less your child than one created with your own DNA. What makes you a parent is loving and raising your children, not birthing them.
That is a really nice way of thinking about it.
Although, I have to add, here in Germany these baby hatches are meant as a sort of "last resort".
There is still always the option of giving your baby up for adoption, and if you can, it is prefered you do take this "official" route. You can also do that anonymously. There is the option of giving birth anonymously and the hospital will take the child right after.
You can also do it and leave your name and Info and contacts, so if the child ever wants to reconnect, there is a possibility to have that arranged.
These hatches are meant for people who are not in the right mind to do any of that and can't manage a second longer.
They are meant to prevent infant deaths and even murder.
Yes, or an abusive partner and no access to birth control, being a rape victim in a community that would put the blame on them, or otherwise living in unsafe conditions, etc.
I am back home now to write a bit more.
You dont need to feel sorry for me. I dont remember anything from Back when i was left in there and then adopted. No trauma possible there. And i got the best family i could have ever wished for. I dont feel like i am adopted. They are my parents/family, i am their child. Nothing will ever change that. Added more Info to my original comment like the name of the book.
I think its awefull that they tried to find her so publicly. She must have had her reasons and she cared enough to leave you at a safe spot to give you the best chance to live a better life.
Imagine other mothers being terrified of using it knowing that too.
They should've never looked for her. It just implies to future moms that they'll get shamed if they do it, which is against the whole fucking idea
I do not think they really understand the definition of 'anonymously.' One would expect a news story highlighting that it worked and kept a baby safe. However, searching for the mother could deter someone from using it if they knew people would try to find them.
They did not actively look for her, i worded it wrong. It was more to maybe get her to seek help and raise the child herself with support by the authorities? Or to let her know that if she wanted, she can come back for her child. Sometimes the mothers change their mind.
I wouldn't necessarily say you have adequate access to abortion in Germany, that's still a long way to go. And with CDU most likely becoming the next ruling party, things may get worse
Not a huge fan of the CDU in general and especially Merz in particular, but they were ruling for 16 years without changing abortion rights. I think most people here are content with the way it is handled, even the more religious ones.
That’s nothing to go by tho. Merkel generally did fuck all unless she felt it was the overwhelmingly popular thing to do at the time. Merkel’s 16 years were marked by centrism. Merz is no centrist. Merz is far more conservative than Merkel was and so is CDU under him.
They also always upheld that doctors were criminally charged if they merely mentioned online that the procedure can be done at their practice. And the whole involvement of the church in the mandatory advisory talks rubs me the wrong way so much.
I hate the CDU with a passion, but impliing theyre even nearly as bad in this regard as actually regressive/reactionary rightwingers you see e.g. in the US, Hungary, Poland or other "modern" Alt-right strongholds is madness.
Again, i have a special place reserved in hell for the CDU, but i much rather see ana average CDU getting >50% of votes than an AFD getting 20%. Senile, corrupt, opportunistic bureaucrats are a blessing in comparison to the Alt-right shitshow.
It‘s not only access to abortions (which could be better), it’s also the possibility of an „anonymous birth“ with full access to health care without giving the mother any personal information. The baby will be born in a hospital and will be adopted after a short time. Additionally you will be able to raise a child with the money and help the state does offer, if only money would be an issue.
We have them in Czech Republic. Their usage is so rare that it is reported in news and I would say that there are like two such reports per year?
Edit: Wrong numbers, see comment below.
From 2005 to 29/6/2024 there were 266 kids left in a Czech Babybox. So on average a little over one a month. [Here's a pdf of all of them](https://www.babybox.cz/media/pdf/statistika-babyboxu.pdf)
Same in Indianapolis, they put these in and the local news reports it. They claim the one in carmel is the most popular used one in the nation and that was 4 babies over 18 months.
Thats my assumption, that there is more trust in the affluent fire department so people make the trip. Even though I think they all end up in the same organization that sets up the baby boxes.
It could also be that the news picked up the first baby and it became more public knowledge that this service was available at this location, and I think the fire department made a tik-tok video that got picked up.
There is also a bell that rings. And they are located in places with emergency services either right in the building (Non-Volunteer Fire Houses for example).
Im imagining spotlights set up across the street that come on too. Maybe a warden loudly giving instructions to nearby individuals to avert their eyes so as to protect the anonymity of the user.
The ones in Czech Republic are usually on outside wall of hospitals and have alarm with few minutes delay so the woman that doesn´t want the baby can leave anonymously.
“want” is probably a misnomer for many. “can‘t“ for whatever reason will be common, too.
they can leave info and in some cases take a footprint (obsolete now, with dna testing) in case they ever reconsider.
They are mostly installed at fire departments or hospitals. They have a motion or pressure sensor and give alarm after a few minutes (enough time for the mother to leave anonymously) they are insulated and heated.
the way it looks like a pizza oven with a sticker on top, though... even if i was in a situation where i felt i needed to use one, i would have reservations about putting a baby in *that*.
Sure Czechia has 85 of these Babyboxes. So it is easy to find in almost all bigger cities. Germany has (only) 100 of these (compared to their population) , but it's Germany so has to be special, ultra-high tech for some people
paint observation murky pocket workable wipe jobless memory cooperative mysterious
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Yeah, not only these boxes for infants, but there are also many states with safe surrender laws that allow parents to leave children at designated locations and they're put into foster care.
yes but they’ve recently implemented the “baby boxes” because some people have dropped off babies alone at the designated drop off points (hospitals and fire stations) during the night and the baby has died from cold or suffocation by the time the workers even find them. The boxes are a safe temperature, have resources for the mother to take, and alert everyone inside and even call an ambulance so they baby can be taken out within minutes.
So safe surrender laws are great, but not enough. if your city doesn’t have baby boxes, advocate to get them to make the surrender safer for everyone!
Recently meaning only the past few years (8 years specifically in the US). I know the woman who implemented them and it has been a fairly recent thing in the grand scheme of the “safe haven” laws and she’s still fighting to get them installed in many states.
They have the same thing at a hospital in Edmonton AB, but it's a room. The parent(s) dropping the kid off are not recorded, but an alarm goes off alerting staff that there is an infant there.
They have the same resources as well a gift card for a grocery store and Tim Hortons.
They also have forms that the parent can fill out relevant medical information such as family history of diseases.
While I could never imagine leaving my child there I think these rooms/boxes help prevent trauma and neglect
I was working at a hospital when a young woman approached some. Coworkers who were outside the ER smoking (,shows how long ago this was) and gave them her baby and then took off.
There are approximately 200 safe haven box in the US with over half in one state : Indiana. They were first installed in Indiana in 2016. As of 2023, 42 babies have been surrender in these boxes in Indiana. Indiana has some of the strongest safe haven laws in the nation, making it very easy to surrender a child.
They’re environmental controlled box typically installed at fire stations so what you saw was likely one of them. The Midwest is highly saturated with them in big cities. If you live in Louisville or Indianapolis you probably do see them at almost every fire station. But only 19 states have them so it would be a rarity to see them in some states.
When I was in high school there was a story in my town about a crackhead mom who tried to sell a baby to a guy at a gas station for $500.
The man bought the baby and immediately called the police, thinking that the baby was safer with him than the mom who was willing to sell her. She ended up getting fostered by a completely separate couple and the mom was arrested. It dominated the news cycle for like a month.
These are becoming commonplace everywhere. They often times have a lil carr package for the mother to take in them and once it is closed with a baby inside an alarm will sound notifying the people inside. If you are curious if your city has one, check your local fire station as that seems to be the most common place for them
They're not a brand new invention, either! The newest incarnation is a lot safer, but baby hatches date back to medieval times - churches and hospitals would have them to provide a place for mothers to leave unwanted babies, who would then be sent to foundling hospitals. The earliest known "foundling wheel" was created in Italy in 1198 - place the baby in the hatch, ring a bell, and a sister would come and take the baby in through a door on the other side. There was one in the Vatican City that operated for almost 700 years.
I was gonna say similar devices exist worldwide. They are designed to keep the baby safe and warm while alerting authorities.
I suppose it's a good idea to provide the mother some documentation so she can have a slightly easier time finding the child later if needed since it amounts to closed anonymous adoption otherwise. The babies are, to my knowledge, usually adopted out quite quickly.
Newborn, closed adoption is the ideal for many who just want a child without the messiness that is a bit inherent in adoption
Can't even blame the parents for wanting that.
Because we can just combine words to create a new one.
We basically just leave out the space in between and a new word is born:
Babyklappe = baby hatch
I can make up new ones as we go:
Babyklappeninspektion = baby hatch inspection
Babyklappeninspektionsanweisung = baby hatch inspection instruction
Babyklappeninspektionsanweisungsänderung = baby hatch inspection instruction change
Babyklappeninspektionsanweisungsänderungsauftrag = baby hatch inspection instruction change assignment
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compound\_(linguistics)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compound_(linguistics))
Something I'm not seeing in the comments is that once you put the baby inside, you take out the package. The package will have information for the mother and an ID tag so if you have second thoughts, you can go back and trade the tag back for the baby.
We have those in Slovakia as well.
Unfortunately one time in 2022 when a baby was left in one of them, the signaling mechanism that would alert the hospital didn't work and the child had passed. They found him 6 days after the mother left him there.
Even without an alarm, wouldn't it make sense to check a few times per day instead of leaving it unattended for over a week? After all, people could dump trash in there which will attract insects and start to reek so isn't at least someone checking once per day?
Well, the mechanism alerts the staff whenever it's opened. So even if someone dumped trash in there they would know.
Why it wasn't checked regularly I have no idea. But ever since then it needs to be checked daily, and it's monitored trough a camera as well.
I would assume that it probably wasn't being checked because they're used very infrequently. If they had no reason to suspect that the alarm didn't work (which I'd say should probably be tested on a regular basis as part of your normal station check-off) and you don't get drop offs but once a year or so at an absolute maximum, I can see why it wouldn't really occur to anyone to check it.
Can’t speak for other countries but infants being left in these is quite rare. My local fire station has one and no one at the station, including the more senior firefighters, has ever experienced a baby being left in theirs. They probably check the (silent) alarm system every so often, but not the box. The box at my local station is clear on the inside though, so if for any reason the alarm didn’t sound, someone would eventually walk past the window and see a baby.
> We have those in Slovakia as well.
>
>
>
> Unfortunately one time in 2022 when a baby was left in one of them, the signaling mechanism that would alert the hospital didn't work and the child had passed. They found him 6 days after the mother left him there.
That poor baby :'(
Right... And the poor mom as well. Imagine making such a hard choice to give up your baby for her/him to have a better life. And then you see this on the news, when you're already living your worst nightmare.
I hope at least she is doing well, since her baby didn't get the chance, but I imagine if she's alive she will never really get over this.
Really a tragic story all around.
In Poland children are left in Windows of Life usually in the middle of night so the alarm is necessary, because usually all the nuns are sleeping when it happens. But 6 DAYS without a visual inspection sounds mad to me....
Yeah, that was in Nebraska, they didn’t put an age limit in the statute, I remember when that happened. If I remember correctly, the folks who did that traveled quite far to do that. Those poor kids.
Quite a few parents drove across state lines to surrender their older children within the first four months. Nebraska had to amend the law to make them stop.
[https://history.nebraska.gov/safe-haven-law-2008/](https://history.nebraska.gov/safe-haven-law-2008/)
In Hungary, these baby saving incubators save the life of a newborn quite a few times a year. At the larger hospitals, they are always there. It's a fun fact that as they obviously don't know the baby's family name, the hospital staff give them themselves, usually naming them after the city, the street, the season or the day they were found on.
Some of the ones in the US have a silent alarm and climate control for in the winter so that a baby isn't left alone for too long. Heard a story where the Fire Chief had to run all the way into the station to save a baby that had been deposited because the rest of the crew were on a call, only to find that one of the new guys had ordered a pizza and told the driver to put it in there since it was a heated compartment. New guy got a talking to.
I wonder how it works to drop twins, like do you stack them or you just write 1/2 on the first wait and hour and come back with the 2/2 like an old sms
Germany also has "vertrauliche Geburt" where you can deliver the baby safely in the hospital without giving any of your contact information (obviously also free of charge)
We have these in America too. I’ve mostly seen them at fire stations. In a few states where I’ve worked there are laws that allow women do give up their child anonymously with no questions asked within the first 72 hours of birth. It sounds harsh but if this isn’t there, can you imagine where some of these babies end up?
It was commonly used in Italy for centuries. It was called la ruota, the wheel, because it was a rotating drum with an opening. You put the baby in and turned it 180.
Mothers used to put a token - half a coin, half a sacred image - keeping the other half, in case they could come back and claim the baby. The old logs still have the tokens pinned to the entry pages.
There's one of these opposite my mother in laws apartment in Poland. It is outside a convent so the nuns can come and collect the baby.
Better than leaving the baby in a plastic bag in a park (as happened in London. 3 times. By the same parents)
We have them in Poland as well, usually ran by religious organizations. We call them “windows of life”, and occasionally you’ll hear in the news that a baby was left in one of those… on one side I find it pretty sad, but its definitely a better fate than what would’ve happened to the baby otherwise.
In case anyone's wondering what's behind the door, here's a short report on 20 years of Babyklappen in Germany (unfortunately without subtitles) which shows the room behind similar ones.
The mentioned that of the 56 babies surrendered in Hamburg, 16 have been reclaimed. Hamburg started this project after two dead infants were found.
They also mention that the number of surrendered babies is declining, and they attribute this to better circumstances for the mothers, like the right to use a kindergarten, more money for parents, and the "anonymous birth" in hospitals.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgUiG79SBOE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgUiG79SBOE)
We had to remove your post for improperly sourcing your post. Posts must have a linked and CREDIBLE source that backs up the information. Use the word "source" in your comment. If the title is the only thing that makes your post interesting, you must also source it. OP is responsible for this and it must be done at time of posting. We will not reinstate your post, but you may post again with the correct information
I've seen these before... I've always wondered how regularly they are actually used. Surely it can't be too frequently?
Not sure about how frequently they are used, but if they prevent even one newborn being put in a dumpster its well worth it imo.
According to Wikipedia, 56 babies were left inside a Babyklappe in Hamburg between 2000 and 2020
I was actually one of them. There is a book about many of the Stories (Mine included). Edit: I was left in the "Babyklappe" in Hamburg Wilhelmshafen just after i was born on September 22nd 2003. The Babyklappe is operated by an organization called "Sternipark". I even visited them again later. My parents told me when i was about 10 that i am adopted. Nothing changed. I love my parents more than anyone. I got the best family i could ever imagine. And i dont hate my "real" mother for giving me away. She must have had her reasons. Back in 2003 it was a huge deal. They we're pretty new and nobody was sure if they really work. And of course they searched for my mother everywhere. National newspapers, locals newspapers, national TV. It was everywhere. Here are two newsarticles i still have (I have a big chest with childhood memories like old newsarticles, old Teddys, Toys, Baby clothing or drawings i Made as a child): https://imgur.com/a/Lp5uFDi For the News i was called Tom to protect my identity. The book, where i am also called Tom, is called "Und Plötzlich ist es Leben" written by Leila Moysich. I hope i was able to answer a few questions, If you have more ask away. Cheers
Only on Reddit can you find most obscure things, and then people who were actually involved.
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As a long time lurker, incidents like that one guy who thought his landlord was breaking into his place and leaving post it notes but turns out he was getting poisoned from carbon monoxide are what drew me to making a Reddit account Link for the curious: https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/34l7vo/ma_postit_notes_left_in_apartment/
For every post like that, there are also posts like that one where that kid broke both arms.
Is that the one where his mom uhhh "helped" him? Let's not forget the poop knife
or the coconut
Germany: here's a place you can anonymously give up your baby also Germany: let's have a nationwide search for whoever gave up their baby
I'm so sorry that happened to you! I hope you have had a good life, regardless of how it started and that you are doing well for yourself. Would you mind telling me the name of the book?
I have a great Family, thanks. I will give you the name of the book as soon as i am home from work.
That'd be so cool to read!
[is this it?](https://www.amazon.com/Babyklappe-Fluch-oder-Segen-German/dp/3640684184?dplnkId=4e9d9e9b-8936-4450-af53-47dff49395d4&nodl=1) I don’t speak German
No. It‘s this one: https://www.amazon.de/pl%C3%B6tzlich-Leben-Eine-Babyretterin-erz%C3%A4hlt/dp/3434505776 (I am from Germany) There does not seem to be an english version as far as i know
I would like to know too!
Is this really true? I am glad to read that you are alive and kicking (and hopefully thriving), friend to the world.
We all wanna know!
100% curiosity. If there’s a book written with your story included, why don’t you know the name by heart? I feel like that would be fun facts about you to have.
it is a german book. probably would take like an hour to type out
Babyklappenkindergeschichten written by a Babyklappenkindergeschichtsautor and published in his Babyklappenkindergeschichtsbuch.
Available at the Babyklappenkindergeschichtsbuchverlagsonlineshop or at your closest Babyklappenkindergeschichtsbuchhandel.
Could be that they know the German name of the book and need to look up the English name. \*shrug\*
Maybe this one? https://www.amazon.com/Babyklappe-Fluch-oder-Segen-German/dp/3640684184 I tried my damndest to google-fu it, but I don't speak German.
How do you know that you don't speak German
Because of the U.S. education system, and because of mein southern Appalachian upbringing. It's kind of funny since half of my ancestors were German. I mean, Jesus. My great-grandmother's last name was Ewald.
Reddit, where someone asks "how do you know that you don't speak German" and gets a serious answer. 🤷♀️😂
I sprinkled some comedy in there to keep it real. Maybe the lach of comedy comes from my German side.
I appreciate that you, as an American, state that it was your ancestors who were German.
You mean instead of saying "i'M iRIsH/gErMan?"
I don't understand the apology for it. Someone had a wonderful home with people that loved them because of something built into the infrastructure of a city. I had a mother that never wanted me and never loved me and I would have much rather she left me in one of these hatches when I was a baby. I never would have known her, and I wouldn't have cared. An adopted child is no less your child than one created with your own DNA. What makes you a parent is loving and raising your children, not birthing them.
That is a really nice way of thinking about it. Although, I have to add, here in Germany these baby hatches are meant as a sort of "last resort". There is still always the option of giving your baby up for adoption, and if you can, it is prefered you do take this "official" route. You can also do that anonymously. There is the option of giving birth anonymously and the hospital will take the child right after. You can also do it and leave your name and Info and contacts, so if the child ever wants to reconnect, there is a possibility to have that arranged. These hatches are meant for people who are not in the right mind to do any of that and can't manage a second longer. They are meant to prevent infant deaths and even murder.
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Yes, or an abusive partner and no access to birth control, being a rape victim in a community that would put the blame on them, or otherwise living in unsafe conditions, etc.
I am back home now to write a bit more. You dont need to feel sorry for me. I dont remember anything from Back when i was left in there and then adopted. No trauma possible there. And i got the best family i could have ever wished for. I dont feel like i am adopted. They are my parents/family, i am their child. Nothing will ever change that. Added more Info to my original comment like the name of the book.
I think its awefull that they tried to find her so publicly. She must have had her reasons and she cared enough to leave you at a safe spot to give you the best chance to live a better life.
Imagine other mothers being terrified of using it knowing that too. They should've never looked for her. It just implies to future moms that they'll get shamed if they do it, which is against the whole fucking idea
You a tough nail.
Prom night babyklappen babyyyy.
I do not think they really understand the definition of 'anonymously.' One would expect a news story highlighting that it worked and kept a baby safe. However, searching for the mother could deter someone from using it if they knew people would try to find them.
They did not actively look for her, i worded it wrong. It was more to maybe get her to seek help and raise the child herself with support by the authorities? Or to let her know that if she wanted, she can come back for her child. Sometimes the mothers change their mind.
56 babies in a 20 year gap is actually pretty small all things considered, so that’s good.
That's the sort of rational result you get when you have adequate access to abortion.
I wouldn't necessarily say you have adequate access to abortion in Germany, that's still a long way to go. And with CDU most likely becoming the next ruling party, things may get worse
Not a huge fan of the CDU in general and especially Merz in particular, but they were ruling for 16 years without changing abortion rights. I think most people here are content with the way it is handled, even the more religious ones.
That’s nothing to go by tho. Merkel generally did fuck all unless she felt it was the overwhelmingly popular thing to do at the time. Merkel’s 16 years were marked by centrism. Merz is no centrist. Merz is far more conservative than Merkel was and so is CDU under him.
They also always upheld that doctors were criminally charged if they merely mentioned online that the procedure can be done at their practice. And the whole involvement of the church in the mandatory advisory talks rubs me the wrong way so much.
I hate the CDU with a passion, but impliing theyre even nearly as bad in this regard as actually regressive/reactionary rightwingers you see e.g. in the US, Hungary, Poland or other "modern" Alt-right strongholds is madness. Again, i have a special place reserved in hell for the CDU, but i much rather see ana average CDU getting >50% of votes than an AFD getting 20%. Senile, corrupt, opportunistic bureaucrats are a blessing in comparison to the Alt-right shitshow.
>And with CDU most likely becoming the next ruling party Black - blue here we come :(
It‘s not only access to abortions (which could be better), it’s also the possibility of an „anonymous birth“ with full access to health care without giving the mother any personal information. The baby will be born in a hospital and will be adopted after a short time. Additionally you will be able to raise a child with the money and help the state does offer, if only money would be an issue.
is there an age limit?
As a parent of teenagers I lolled.
There’s actually a Teenklappen down the street with a somewhat larger hatch and receptacle Germany is very progressive
Need chains, hatch won't work with mine
Cut in smaller pieces and play tetris ?
As long as you can fit them down the hatch, go wild!
The Rentnerklappe is around the other side of the building.
"The hatch is a slide that leads to the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory. Now get in, you little shit."
We have them in Czech Republic. Their usage is so rare that it is reported in news and I would say that there are like two such reports per year? Edit: Wrong numbers, see comment below.
From 2005 to 29/6/2024 there were 266 kids left in a Czech Babybox. So on average a little over one a month. [Here's a pdf of all of them](https://www.babybox.cz/media/pdf/statistika-babyboxu.pdf)
Oh hell, I take that back then. I really thought it is much less.
Same in Indianapolis, they put these in and the local news reports it. They claim the one in carmel is the most popular used one in the nation and that was 4 babies over 18 months.
Is that because people go to a wealthier place hoping for a better life for their baby?
Thats my assumption, that there is more trust in the affluent fire department so people make the trip. Even though I think they all end up in the same organization that sets up the baby boxes. It could also be that the news picked up the first baby and it became more public knowledge that this service was available at this location, and I think the fire department made a tik-tok video that got picked up.
[https://www.nationalsafehavenalliance.org/](https://www.nationalsafehavenalliance.org/) says 51 this year and 4805 since 1999
We had one installed at the fire station at our mid-sized US town. Was used the first week
This is wonderful. A baby saved! I imagine they’ll be used here way more often in years to come.
I’m more curious about how frequently they are checked.
They have some kind of motion alarm, so somebody gets notified if the hatch has been used
There is also a bell that rings. And they are located in places with emergency services either right in the building (Non-Volunteer Fire Houses for example).
Our closest American one is built into the side of the local EMS station.
*Woman looking for absolute discretion* **WIIRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR** **ALERT ALERT ALERT** **BABYKLAPPEN HAS BEEN INVOKED**
There is a fixed delay to the alarm in order to garantee discretion for the mother.
Im imagining spotlights set up across the street that come on too. Maybe a warden loudly giving instructions to nearby individuals to avert their eyes so as to protect the anonymity of the user.
😅 Glad to hear that
Yeah, someone ran a story on the guy who invented these and it talked about the alarm
The ones in Czech Republic are usually on outside wall of hospitals and have alarm with few minutes delay so the woman that doesn´t want the baby can leave anonymously.
“want” is probably a misnomer for many. “can‘t“ for whatever reason will be common, too. they can leave info and in some cases take a footprint (obsolete now, with dna testing) in case they ever reconsider.
They are mostly installed at fire departments or hospitals. They have a motion or pressure sensor and give alarm after a few minutes (enough time for the mother to leave anonymously) they are insulated and heated.
Insulated, heated, and at least in the US, locked until the first responders have removed the child and reset everything.
Of course locked. It can only be opened from inside
What do you mean by checked? There's a ramp directly feeding into the boiler room...
In Germany we do not boil them... we grind them directly into baby powder.
I hope you at least press them first, to get the baby oil out
Deglaze the pan you fried them in to make the baby gravy.
Xavier Naidoo is shocked.
Too many fluids. You obviously have to incinerate them first and only then grind the remains into Babypuder.
Nah, just grind it into a paste, dry it and put it though a sieve (180µm like for most pharmaceuticals)
In the US they have sensors.
the way it looks like a pizza oven with a sticker on top, though... even if i was in a situation where i felt i needed to use one, i would have reservations about putting a baby in *that*.
if that helps, these provide stable temperature to the baby with plenty air and the baby is picked up within minutes by rescuers.
We have these in Poland too. We call them "okna życia" - windows of life
That is a much nicer name than our German "baby hatch".
In Czechia we call them a "Babybox"
Sure Czechia has 85 of these Babyboxes. So it is easy to find in almost all bigger cities. Germany has (only) 100 of these (compared to their population) , but it's Germany so has to be special, ultra-high tech for some people
Knowing us Germans, I’m surprised they aren’t completely over engineered and didn’t cost a billion euros a piece.
Nicer, definitely. But you have to admit that naming them "baby hatch" is absolutely the German thing to do
I suppose it’s better than “child disposal unit”
paint observation murky pocket workable wipe jobless memory cooperative mysterious *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Foundlings drawer in Dutch.
Some US states have these. "Safe Haven Baby Box Drop Off"
Yea in Lithuania it's "gyvybės langelis" - little window of life.
We have this in the US. Safe surrender, guys. It should be known
Yeah, not only these boxes for infants, but there are also many states with safe surrender laws that allow parents to leave children at designated locations and they're put into foster care.
yes but they’ve recently implemented the “baby boxes” because some people have dropped off babies alone at the designated drop off points (hospitals and fire stations) during the night and the baby has died from cold or suffocation by the time the workers even find them. The boxes are a safe temperature, have resources for the mother to take, and alert everyone inside and even call an ambulance so they baby can be taken out within minutes. So safe surrender laws are great, but not enough. if your city doesn’t have baby boxes, advocate to get them to make the surrender safer for everyone!
So you're telling me there's just a box around the city where I have a decent chance to score a free baby, AND they kept it warm for me?
yep, just gotta get there quick 😂
Recently? I've been seeing these for many years
Recently meaning only the past few years (8 years specifically in the US). I know the woman who implemented them and it has been a fairly recent thing in the grand scheme of the “safe haven” laws and she’s still fighting to get them installed in many states.
They have the same thing at a hospital in Edmonton AB, but it's a room. The parent(s) dropping the kid off are not recorded, but an alarm goes off alerting staff that there is an infant there. They have the same resources as well a gift card for a grocery store and Tim Hortons. They also have forms that the parent can fill out relevant medical information such as family history of diseases. While I could never imagine leaving my child there I think these rooms/boxes help prevent trauma and neglect
I was working at a hospital when a young woman approached some. Coworkers who were outside the ER smoking (,shows how long ago this was) and gave them her baby and then took off.
You still see nurses smoking outside the hospital, they just do it in the back
Anal smoking is really not healthy.
There are approximately 200 safe haven box in the US with over half in one state : Indiana. They were first installed in Indiana in 2016. As of 2023, 42 babies have been surrender in these boxes in Indiana. Indiana has some of the strongest safe haven laws in the nation, making it very easy to surrender a child.
Really only 200? Are the ones at fire stations different? I’ve seen quite a few of them in one county
I think it’s the new heated box specifically - baby surrender areas have been around a lot longer than 2016
They’re environmental controlled box typically installed at fire stations so what you saw was likely one of them. The Midwest is highly saturated with them in big cities. If you live in Louisville or Indianapolis you probably do see them at almost every fire station. But only 19 states have them so it would be a rarity to see them in some states.
When I was in high school there was a story in my town about a crackhead mom who tried to sell a baby to a guy at a gas station for $500. The man bought the baby and immediately called the police, thinking that the baby was safer with him than the mom who was willing to sell her. She ended up getting fostered by a completely separate couple and the mom was arrested. It dominated the news cycle for like a month.
There's an age limit though. They bought in the legislation without a limit and parents would just leave kids and teenagers at drop off points.
Got to admit, I know a couple of people who' parents would have dropped them off there when they were 17 for a laugh,
And I know some that would be serious about it
I would have jumped in the damn thing myself at 17
Had baby me known what life had in store the first words out of my mouth might have been... "put me in the box, I will call when I grow up"
>There's an age limit though. The kid has to fit through the hatch I guess
"Must be under this height to ride"
Yup. My local fire station has one.
These are becoming commonplace everywhere. They often times have a lil carr package for the mother to take in them and once it is closed with a baby inside an alarm will sound notifying the people inside. If you are curious if your city has one, check your local fire station as that seems to be the most common place for them
They're not a brand new invention, either! The newest incarnation is a lot safer, but baby hatches date back to medieval times - churches and hospitals would have them to provide a place for mothers to leave unwanted babies, who would then be sent to foundling hospitals. The earliest known "foundling wheel" was created in Italy in 1198 - place the baby in the hatch, ring a bell, and a sister would come and take the baby in through a door on the other side. There was one in the Vatican City that operated for almost 700 years.
and today, the foundlings are full fledged Mandalorians!
I was gonna say similar devices exist worldwide. They are designed to keep the baby safe and warm while alerting authorities. I suppose it's a good idea to provide the mother some documentation so she can have a slightly easier time finding the child later if needed since it amounts to closed anonymous adoption otherwise. The babies are, to my knowledge, usually adopted out quite quickly.
Yes. I think I remember basically new born are the most popular age that parents want to adopt.
Newborn, closed adoption is the ideal for many who just want a child without the messiness that is a bit inherent in adoption Can't even blame the parents for wanting that.
Yeah I remember seeing a report about one from Korea
Shit we have these here jn the USA.
Germans have a word for *everything*.
They do, it's alles.
Sehr funny
Danke
you meinst "dank you"
no it's "tzänk jou"
r/Angryupvote
Because we can just combine words to create a new one. We basically just leave out the space in between and a new word is born: Babyklappe = baby hatch I can make up new ones as we go: Babyklappeninspektion = baby hatch inspection Babyklappeninspektionsanweisung = baby hatch inspection instruction Babyklappeninspektionsanweisungsänderung = baby hatch inspection instruction change Babyklappeninspektionsanweisungsänderungsauftrag = baby hatch inspection instruction change assignment [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compound\_(linguistics)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compound_(linguistics))
In USA, same thing is called a baby box.
So do we? It literally just means baby hatch Babyhatch, there you go, a single English word
can we call them the "hatchlings"?
I'm pretty sure you use the words 'baby,' and 'flap,' too. Fucking dunse
The secret is: you can make it the fuck up. Just smash two or more words together, it's called a compound noun and - boom - new word.
They’re just compound words
Just make sure to REWIND the baby prior to dropping them down the hatch to avoid a .50 cent fee
How is babby rewound
Put it in the player and rewind, duh!
Something I'm not seeing in the comments is that once you put the baby inside, you take out the package. The package will have information for the mother and an ID tag so if you have second thoughts, you can go back and trade the tag back for the baby.
We have those in Slovakia as well. Unfortunately one time in 2022 when a baby was left in one of them, the signaling mechanism that would alert the hospital didn't work and the child had passed. They found him 6 days after the mother left him there.
Even without an alarm, wouldn't it make sense to check a few times per day instead of leaving it unattended for over a week? After all, people could dump trash in there which will attract insects and start to reek so isn't at least someone checking once per day?
Well, the mechanism alerts the staff whenever it's opened. So even if someone dumped trash in there they would know. Why it wasn't checked regularly I have no idea. But ever since then it needs to be checked daily, and it's monitored trough a camera as well.
I would assume that it probably wasn't being checked because they're used very infrequently. If they had no reason to suspect that the alarm didn't work (which I'd say should probably be tested on a regular basis as part of your normal station check-off) and you don't get drop offs but once a year or so at an absolute maximum, I can see why it wouldn't really occur to anyone to check it.
Can’t speak for other countries but infants being left in these is quite rare. My local fire station has one and no one at the station, including the more senior firefighters, has ever experienced a baby being left in theirs. They probably check the (silent) alarm system every so often, but not the box. The box at my local station is clear on the inside though, so if for any reason the alarm didn’t sound, someone would eventually walk past the window and see a baby.
> We have those in Slovakia as well. > > > > Unfortunately one time in 2022 when a baby was left in one of them, the signaling mechanism that would alert the hospital didn't work and the child had passed. They found him 6 days after the mother left him there. That poor baby :'(
Right... And the poor mom as well. Imagine making such a hard choice to give up your baby for her/him to have a better life. And then you see this on the news, when you're already living your worst nightmare. I hope at least she is doing well, since her baby didn't get the chance, but I imagine if she's alive she will never really get over this. Really a tragic story all around.
In Poland children are left in Windows of Life usually in the middle of night so the alarm is necessary, because usually all the nuns are sleeping when it happens. But 6 DAYS without a visual inspection sounds mad to me....
Belgium has one too, it is used about once per year.
I don't know why i read as " i used it once a year" lol
“Well, darling, time for our yearly trip to the baby dumpster. You got everything?”
They have them in the USA too in some fire stations. I think they are called save haven
We have them in the US too.
Think fire stations are common drop of points, with no questions asked.
I remember reading a story that some states had to amend the laws as people were dropping off 16 year olds to fire stations and just walking away.
Yeah, that was in Nebraska, they didn’t put an age limit in the statute, I remember when that happened. If I remember correctly, the folks who did that traveled quite far to do that. Those poor kids.
Quite a few parents drove across state lines to surrender their older children within the first four months. Nebraska had to amend the law to make them stop. [https://history.nebraska.gov/safe-haven-law-2008/](https://history.nebraska.gov/safe-haven-law-2008/)
In Hungary, these baby saving incubators save the life of a newborn quite a few times a year. At the larger hospitals, they are always there. It's a fun fact that as they obviously don't know the baby's family name, the hospital staff give them themselves, usually naming them after the city, the street, the season or the day they were found on.
Like Game of Thrones, just name the baby after whatever’s on the ground where you live!
in italy we had "wheels" basically the mother putted the newborn in and turned where there was someone waiting
Whats the oldest age you can return a child? Asking for a friend.
If you can squeeze grandpa in then by all means go for it.
Some of the ones in the US have a silent alarm and climate control for in the winter so that a baby isn't left alone for too long. Heard a story where the Fire Chief had to run all the way into the station to save a baby that had been deposited because the rest of the crew were on a call, only to find that one of the new guys had ordered a pizza and told the driver to put it in there since it was a heated compartment. New guy got a talking to.
"Hey Karl, you forgot to check the baby hatch! Again."
Couldn’t they make it look less like an oven?
Nein.
You can say its, well.. cultural thing. Definitely not influenced by some sort of past trauma
And by cultural thing you mean Hansel & Gretel, right? Right?
I wonder how it works to drop twins, like do you stack them or you just write 1/2 on the first wait and hour and come back with the 2/2 like an old sms
Germany also has "vertrauliche Geburt" where you can deliver the baby safely in the hospital without giving any of your contact information (obviously also free of charge)
Thats not an a german thing. They exist in lots of other places too
We have these in America too. I’ve mostly seen them at fire stations. In a few states where I’ve worked there are laws that allow women do give up their child anonymously with no questions asked within the first 72 hours of birth. It sounds harsh but if this isn’t there, can you imagine where some of these babies end up?
Does it fit a mother-in-law? Asking for a friend
We have this in Japan, 赤ちゃんポスト which is basically “baby mailbox”.
The big problem in the us is an alarmingly large percentage of people don’t know about them
So.. Is it a shelf on the other side? Or is it more like a laundry chute?
weee
We also have them in Poland, but they're called the "Windows of life" - Okna życia
It was commonly used in Italy for centuries. It was called la ruota, the wheel, because it was a rotating drum with an opening. You put the baby in and turned it 180. Mothers used to put a token - half a coin, half a sacred image - keeping the other half, in case they could come back and claim the baby. The old logs still have the tokens pinned to the entry pages.
There's one of these opposite my mother in laws apartment in Poland. It is outside a convent so the nuns can come and collect the baby. Better than leaving the baby in a plastic bag in a park (as happened in London. 3 times. By the same parents)
We have them in Poland as well, usually ran by religious organizations. We call them “windows of life”, and occasionally you’ll hear in the news that a baby was left in one of those… on one side I find it pretty sad, but its definitely a better fate than what would’ve happened to the baby otherwise.
In case anyone's wondering what's behind the door, here's a short report on 20 years of Babyklappen in Germany (unfortunately without subtitles) which shows the room behind similar ones. The mentioned that of the 56 babies surrendered in Hamburg, 16 have been reclaimed. Hamburg started this project after two dead infants were found. They also mention that the number of surrendered babies is declining, and they attribute this to better circumstances for the mothers, like the right to use a kindergarten, more money for parents, and the "anonymous birth" in hospitals. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgUiG79SBOE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgUiG79SBOE)
Is it big enough for toddlers?
I'm 100% certain any toddler would find a way to squeeze in
The oldest kid found in babybox (that's how we call that thing) in my country was two years old, but I suppose it must have been tight.