5-year-old dies after accidentally left inside vehicle for
several hours as temperatures top 100 degrees, sheriff says
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas – A child is dead after being
left inside a hot vehicle for several hours outside a northeast
Harris County home, according to Sheriff Ed Gonzalez.
The
tragic incident unfolded around 3 p.m. in the 13700 block of
Blair Hill Lane.
According to Gonzalez, a mother and her
two sons - ages 8 and 5 - were out running errands for a
birthday party and when they arrived back to the home, the mom
and the older boy got out of the vehicle.
The mother was
unaware that her youngest son was still strapped inside. By the
time she realized that she had not seen her little boy, she ran
outside and found him unresponsive in the back of the vehicle.
Afternoon temperatures soared slightly above 100 degrees
Monday afternoon, and temperatures inside the closed vehicle
were even higher.
The Medical Examiner’s Office has not
yet released his official cause of death, but Gonzalez said he
likely died due to heat stroke.
“It appears that the
child routinely knows how to unbuckle himself from the toddler’s
seat and open the door, but in this occasion, it didn’t happen,”
Gonzalez said.
Officials are reminding parents who are
traveling with their children during these days of extreme heat
to put something in the back seat to remind yourself that a
child is in the vehicle with you.