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Couple want to adopt newborn they helped rescue from dumpster

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A married couple who briefly cared for an abandoned newborn found in a Merced dumpster say they want to adopt the child.

Jimmy and Annette Alvarez have sat down with Merced County officials for an adoption orientation -- a first step toward adopting a child, the Merced Sun-Star reported. The meeting is geared toward prospective adoptive parents and does not include discussing any specific child, officials told the paper.

However, the goal for the Alvarez family is clear: They hope to care for the newborn they pulled from a Sunnyside Apartments garbage bin last week after a homeless man rummaging through the trash found the child.

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“All weekend we’ve been trying to figure out how we’re going to go about adopting her,” Annette told KFSN-TV.

The baby was found about 5:48 a.m. Thursday in the 900 block of D Street, police said.

She reportedly was wrapped in a towel and had her umbilical cord still attached.

Jimmy Alvarez, who lives nearby and arrived on the scene after the man who found the baby called for help, said she was covered in gnats and trash, so he reached into the bin, pulled her out and wrapped her in his shirt, KOVR-TV in Sacramento reported.

Emergency medical personnel believe that the baby had been inside the dumpster for at least 45 minutes, Merced Police Capt. Tom Trindad told The Times.

News of the discovery has prompted an outpouring of support from people looking to help the baby, including the Alvarezes.

The girl and her parents, though, still have parental rights, Trindad said.

“We want to do what’s right for all that’s involved,” he said.

For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna and @VeronicaRochaLA

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