Fetus Found In Tank At Waste Water Plant

Posted: 9:54 am EST November 5, 2009
Updated: 6:35 pm EST November 5, 2009

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A worker at a water treatment plant in Orlando made a shocking discovery Thursday. Floating in a waste water tank at the plant on LB McLeod Road (see map) was a small fetus.

Police are trying to find out how the body got into the sewer system. Roughly, 15 to 20 million gallons of waste water pass through the treatment facility in Orlando every day. It's not rare to find things like toys and rocks, but a worker checking a collection pool Thursday morning made the gruesome discovery.

“It's certainly unfortunate and there might be an explanation,” Sergeant Barbara Jones of the Orlando Police Department said.

Police homicide detectives were called to the facility and spent the morning checking over the scene to determine how a human fetus ended up there. The worker found the fetus in the collection tower. It was stopped by one of the screens as it passed through.

An officer walked away from the scene with a small red plastic bag. Police said the fetus was turned over to the Medical Examiner's Office, who confirmed that the fetus been carried by its mother for 13 weeks

“We are really looking into that, where exactly the water comes from, sewer, bathroom, a gutter, there are a lot of sources,” Jones said.

The facility on LB McLeod Road collects waste water from 100,000 homes and businesses in west Orlando. It's one of three waste water plants in the city.

The employee said he was too shaken up to talk about the incident.

Orlando police say there is no criminal investigation being conducted at this time.