The body of a newborn was found in a “safe haven” box at an Idaho hospital, prompting an investigation.

Officers responded to Grove Creek Medical Center in Blackfoot, eastern Idaho, where a dead newborn girl was recovered from a state “safe haven” box on Oct. 13, the local station. KTVB7 reported. Refuge boxes allow parents or caregivers the ability to safely surrender a child and remain anonymous, but only when the child is unharmed.

The baby was removed from the bassinet by Grove Creek medical staff shortly after he was placed there, but they quickly realized the baby “had passed away long before he was placed in the baby box,” according to a statement from Wednesday. post on social media.

“We are incredibly grateful for our dedicated team who responded within moments to the Safe Haven Baby Box alarm and gave everything in a heartbreaking situation,” Grove Creek wrote in the post. “Although this child was already deceased when he was abandoned, the staff showed deep compassion and commitment to care. Their actions mean everything to us and we are so proud of how they honor every life they touch.”

USA TODAY reached out to Twin Falls and Blackfoot police for additional comment, but did not immediately hear back Wednesday.

“Stomach Sick” Safe Haven Box Founder

Monica Kelsey, who founded Safe Haven Baby Boxes and was herself abandoned as a child in 1973, said her organization is fully cooperating with the investigation as authorities investigate how the baby died.

“We are heartbroken,” Kelsey said in a Facebook post, adding that the baby may have been dead for days. “It makes me sick to my stomach… This kid was in this box for literally a minute.”

She added that “it was devastating all around.”

In the statement, she pointed out that the case was “an illegal, fatal abandonment” because the baby was placed in the box while wrapped in a blanket with the placenta still attached.

The organization said it aims to end child abandonment and protect women in crisis with refuge boxes. According to the group, at least 52 babies have been “lovingly surrendered” to baby box locations since 2017. However, the organization promises to work with law enforcement to seek justice for violations of the Safe Haven Act and any illegal abandonments.

“As the only organization that offers an anonymous submission option, we are on the front lines of educating the public about how this program works,” Kelsey said in a statement. “We will continue to educate the public about the vast differences between the illegal abandonment and the legal and safe surrender of an unharmed newborn.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ‘Devastating’: Baby found dead in Safe Haven box at Idaho hospital