[UPDATED] Baby, note found in cardboard box at San Fernando General Hospital

A newborn girl and a note were found in a cardboard box in the hallway on the ground floor of the San Fernando General Hospital on Monday morning.

The police confirmed the one-page hand-written note but were tightlipped about its content.

Newsday learnt that the author, believed to be the baby's mother, explained that she could not care for the child.

The police said the child appeared to be healthy. No one saw who abandoned her.

Newsday spoke with Selwyn Carrington, the man who was heading to the hospital shortly before 9 am, when he saw the box on the ground.

He said a woman was walking nearby ahead of him and said, "How that look like a baby so?"

Carrington looked inside the box in the corner of a corridor and responded, "Yes, that is a baby."

At the time, he could not say if the baby was male or female because only her face was visible.

"It is that woman who spotted the baby first. Then she went her way. The baby was awake but not crying or anything. A pink teddy bear was also in the box. The baby was wrapped in a brown blanket. I did not see anything else. The baby looked like a month old," Carrington said.

He recalled that someone alerted a doctor, and other staff nearby.

"The doctor came, and more doctors came running one time. As I was about to take a photo, a doctor pushed away his hands to prevent me from taking any."

He said he complied when they asked him not to take pictures. The doctors also told other passers-by not to take any photos.

The staff took the baby inside to be medically examined.

Carrington said he was having abdominal pains and went to the hospital for care.

The baby, he said, is light-skin and appeared of "Spanish" descent.

He later gave a statement to the police while at the hospital.

A statement from the South-West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) confirmed the newborn had been found on the compound and was receiving care from medical professionals.

The statement added, "Additionally, an investigation is underway and in progress to determine the circumstances which led to this unfortunate incident.

"The SWRHA has alerted the relevant partner state agencies to provide all the necessary assistance as required."

No further details were given.

Several people at the hospital said they did not see the baby, but saw when doctors gathered in the hallway.

A patient who asked not to be identified said, "I came here at 10 am, but they had already moved the baby. A lot of people are talking about it. Some say a man was passing and heard the sounds of a kitten in a garbage bag.

"When he checked, he saw it was a baby. Some say a man was eating a Kiss cake and was going to throw the garbage in a bin, then saw the child in the bin."

The police are calling for anyone with information to contact the nearest station or San Fernando police at 652-2564.

In November 2020, a Freeport resident heard an infant crying in a bushy area of Beaucarro Road and called the police. Police found a baby girl covered in ants. Her umbilical cord was nearby, and she was estimated to be only a few weeks old.

They took her to the Chaguanas health facility for a check-up, and staff said she appeared dehydrated but was otherwise healthy. She remains in state custody, and her mother remains unknown.

This story was originally published with the title "Baby found in cardboard box at San Fernando General Hospital" and has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.

A newborn baby was found in a cardboard box at the San Fernando General Hospital on Monday morning.

A man was heading to the hospital when he saw the box on the ground at around 8.30 am

The child was awake and appeared to be in good health. The baby girl was wrapped in a brown blanket with only her face visible.

Two workers were passing by and the man and another passerby called out to them.

They took the baby inside to be medically examined.