Newborn girl rescued after being abandoned, covered in ants

HOUSTON— A newborn girl has been saved after a passer-by found her abandoned, crying and covered in ants and other debris in a flower bed at a suburban Houston apartment complex.

Harris County Sheriff’s Deputy Thomas Gilliland says only the alertness of the complex resident who found the baby before dawn Thursday saved the child from dying. Investigators say the girl was less than an hour old. They followed a trail of blood to an apartment where a 21-year-old woman admitted being the mother.

The woman has been detained for psychological and medical valuation, but no charges have been filed.