Newborn girl rescued from toilet pit in China

Jhphoto / jhphoto - Imaginechina

A sanitation worker shows the squat toilet dug out to save the newborn, in Beijing, China

By msnbc.com staff

A newborn girl who fell into a toilet pit when her mother gave birth in a public bathroom is in good condition, according to media reports in China.

Cai Qulin, 36, went into labor early on Saturday afternoon, nine days ahead of her due date, and said she urgently needed to use the bathroom before going to the hospital in Beijing, the English-language China Daily reported.

Unexpectedly, the child was born as Qulin squatted at the public toilet, and the infant girl fell into the pit, it said.

"My sister-in-law and niece are both OK now. As soon as doctor permits it, we'll bring the baby home," said Zhang Zhenghua, the baby’s aunt. 

"It's not often that a mother will give birth to a baby in an unexpected place like the toilet, but older mothers who have already given birth before may have a bigger chance of doing so," Wang Linhong, head of National Center for Women and Children's Health, told China Daily.