The Hillsborough Police Department is seeking information regarding an “unborn fetus” found at a sewer pump station south of town on Friday.

The department released a statement saying a Hillsborough utilities worker found the fetus around 10:30 a.m. while cleaning out a pump station on Orange Grove Road. The station was last cleaned out on Wednesday.

Police are looking for information in order to locate the mother and ensure her safety. Lieutenant Davis Trimmer, who is leading the investigation, said in the release the authorities are concerned about the mother and want to be sure no medical concerns exist from a miscarriage or an assault.

Pump stations help sewage flow past an elevated area by lifting the sewage from a lower to higher elevation. Utilities staff regularly perform maintenance on the pumps to prevent overflows, which is how the body was discovered.

According to the release, the body has been transported to the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office in Raleigh.

Anyone with information helpful to the police regarding this incident is encouraged to contact Trimmer at 919-296-9525 or by email. Anonymous crime tips can also can be made by calling 919-296-9555 or using the See It, Say It, Send It app and website.