A baby girl died in Richmond, Virginia on Tuesday afternoon after she was left unattended in a hot car.
The girl is believed to be about 10-months old. Sources told WTVR that the baby was seen inside the SUV while the woman driver went into a grocery store. It’s not known how long the girl was left inside.
The car was later driven to a home in South Richmond at the 4600 block of Britannia Road. This is where the woman called 911 and emergency crew responded at the scene just before 2 p.m., Crime Insider sources told the station.
The baby girl went into cardiac arrest and died on the way to the hospital, WTVR reported. Other sources, such as the Times-Dispatch, reported that the girl arrived at the hospital, where she died.
But two witnesses said the girl appeared unresponsive even before she was being transported to the hospital.
Quenton Massenberry, a resident in the area, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that he saw about six police officers removing a baby from a car seat of the vehicle parked at the house. The infant appeared to be dead at the time.
Angelica Juarez, a neighbor, told WWBT that “the baby was already dead” when the emergency crews arrived at the home.
Police in Richmond says they are in the early stages of investigating the baby’s death and that it may be heat-related. The death does not appear to be suspicious according to police.
Crime Insider sources say that investigators are wondering why the woman called 911 from home and not the parking lot of the grocery store, where the baby had been left unattended, reported WTVR.
Temperatures in Richmond in the afternoon that day, when the baby girl was left unattended, were high, reaching the low 90’s.
Virginia state ranks ninth in the country on the number of child hot car deaths with at least 28 fatalities since 1990, according to KidsAndCars.org.
According to the No Heat Stroke organization, 21 child vehicular heatstroke deaths have taken place so far this year—the latest fatality being the 21st.
“This is the 21st child that has died this year in a hot car,” Amber Rollins of KidsAndCars.org said according to WWBT.
10-month-old girl dies after being left in hot car in Richmond. #CheckForBabyhttps://t.co/DQ4Wv9NrhJ
— DRIVE SMART Virginia (@DRIVESMARTVA) July 17, 2019
Jan Null, a San Jose State professor and former meteorologist with the National Weather Service, told WTVR that the temperatures inside vehicles heat up rapidly.
He also said that smaller infants are “overcome by heat much faster than an adult,” with their body temperatures rising 3-5 times faster than an adult because “their surface area for perspiration compared to body mass is not good.”
Children in Hot Cars
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At least 52 children died from heatstroke last year, according to the Kids and Cars website. From 1990 to 2018, at least 888 children died from heatstroke.
An investigation into the cause of the death conducted by the No Heat Stroke organization, found that 54 percent of the deaths stemmed from a caregiver forgetting the child. Another 26 percent of deaths came after a child gained access to the car on their own, while about 19 percent of the deaths occurred after they were knowingly left by a caregiver in the vehicle.
The U.S. National Safety Council said that caregivers can be aware of the deaths and take action.
“Parents and caregivers can act immediately to end these deaths. Even on relatively mild days, temperatures inside vehicles still can reach life-threatening levels in minutes, and cracking the window doesn’t help,” the council stated on its website.
“The National Safety Council advises parents and caregivers to stick to a routine and avoid distractions to reduce the risk of forgetting a child.
“Keep car doors locked so children cannot gain access, and teach them that cars are not play-areas. Place a purse, briefcase, or even a left shoe in the back seat to force you to take one last glance.”
