Baby Left in Car While Father Has Beer, Second Child Dies (VIDEO)
Two cases of parents leaving their children in cars arose last week, one of which resulted in the death a 5-month old baby girl.
A 37-year-old woman was arrested in El Paso, Texas on Friday after police say she left her 5-month-old child in a car. Temperatures last week were over 90 degrees and the child was found dead. Police are uncertain how long the woman, a business teacher at Riverside High School, had left the little girl in the car.
A second man was arrested on Wednesday near Darby, Pennsylvania after witnesses discovered that he had left his child in an unlocked car. James Lovett, 33, was found drinking inside Gambol's Bar in Upper Darby while his 10-month-old child was left alone in the car.
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A 2-year-old was also left in critical condition last month after his parents allegedly forgot to take her out of the car. The child was left strapped in the car for hours in Tampa, Fla. before either parent realized the child was missing. After discovered the baby in the car, the parents call 911. Medics arrived to find the child unresponsive although he later recovered while at the hospital.
Parents leaving children in cars is not an uncommon incident. Child advocate groups have stated that about 38 children die each year from heatstroke after being trapped in cars.
"Just think of your child when they have a high fever. They get lethargic," FOX 13 Medical Reporter Dr. Joette Giovinco said. "They don't want to play. They get listless. It's the something that happens in your car as the temperature rises. Eventually their origins begin to fail. Their kidneys shut down, and they die."
Experts say in dangerously hot temperatures, it only takes a few minutes before a child is at risk of dying.
