A 1-year-old girl died after her grandmother, who forgot to drop her off at day care, left her in the back seat of the car for around eight hours while she went to work Monday in New York state, police said.
When the 54-year-old woman got off work, she went to pick up the baby from the day care in Smithtown on Long Island, when she realized she left the 14-month-old girl in the car, the Suffolk County Police Department said in a news release sent to USA TODAY.
The child was taken to a hospital in Smithtown where she was pronounced dead, police said.
Suffolk County Police Homicide Squad detectives are investigating the death.
Hot cars:With summer at its hottest, here’s what to know about the danger of kids left in cars
15 children have died after being left in a hot car in 2023
Fifteen children have died after being left in a hot car this year, according to NoHeatStroke.org and Kids and Car Safety.
In the past 25 years, nearly 1,000 children have died while trapped inside hot cars, according to the the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
In just 10 minutes, a car can heat up by 20 degrees, the NHTSA says on its website. Even if temperatures are in the 60s outside, the inside of a car can reach 110 degrees.
“A child’s body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adult’s,” the NHTSA said. “A child can die when their body temperature reaches 107 degrees.”
Contributing: Janet Loehrke, USA TODAY
