UNION COUNTY, N.C. -- Investigators are looking into the death of a newborn found next to a burn pile at a home in Union County.

The homeowner said she came home from running errands and found the girl’s remains in her front yard off Whispering Hollow Road at about noon Tuesday. That’s near the Lancaster County line.

She said at first she thought it was a doll, but when she got closer she realized it wasn’t. She ran inside to check on her own 5-month-old daughter.

“All I could think about is that poor little baby. It must have suffered,” she said.

Investigators said they believe the infant was full-term, but they don’t know if she was born alive. Her umbilical cord was still attached.

Investigators said they do not have any idea who left the baby there but they are following leads. They don’t believe the body had been there long.

The infant’s remains have been taken to the medical examiner’s office to determine how she died.

Eyewitness News will have more information as it becomes available.

RAW VIDEO: Investigators Collecting Evidence Where Infant's Remains Found