Hurst Officers Find Baby Alive In Dumpster

HURST (CBSDFW.COM) - A baby was found alive inside a dumpster in Hurst Friday morning, police said.

Authorities responded to the 900 block of Melbourne Road after around 9:30 a.m. in regards to a medical issue. Officers arrived at the scene and met with a woman.

Officers found the baby inside a dumpster behind a Souper Salad at the scene. Police say the baby appeared to be in good health.

The Hurst Fire Department transported the woman and baby to local hospitals. The woman's identity has not been released.

Employees of the strip mall where the baby was found said the woman worked at the Souper Salad and that she was the baby's mother.

Jen Jones, who works nearby, was worried about what would have happened if the baby hadn't been found in the dumpster Friday morning.

"A dumpster gets emptied by the trash truck so it gets dumped. That baby would be crushed," said Jones.

Investigators wouldn't comment on how the baby ended up in the dumpster behind the Souper Salad.

"To hear that somebody chose to put their baby, their newborn baby in a dumpster rather than choosing to make the choice for a safe place or to tell a co-worker. It's hard to hear," said Jones. "Because that's a human life."

In Texas, the Safe Haven law legally allows parents to leave their infant at a hospital or fire station -- no questions asked.

The closest fire station to the Souper Salad is less than a mile away while the nearest hospital is less than a mile and a half.

Lynn Pearsons, an educator who's worked with pregnant teens before, said there's always more to the story.

"Did they not know or was there a lack of information or were there other personal things that people didn't know were happening that caused that person to make such a terrible decision," said Pearsons.