A toddler tragically passed away inside a hot car on Friday after her mother reportedly forgot that she had left her child unattended in the vehicle parked outside a high school in South Carolina, USA.
According to AP News, Berkeley County Coroner Darnell Hartwell informed media outlets that he believes the 16-month-old girl’s death was a result of heat exposure, although an autopsy will be conducted to confirm. The temperature inside the car likely exceeded 100 degrees F (about 38 degrees C), the coroner said.
Hartwell noted that the child’s mother works at Bishop England High School in Charleston, and had parked her sport utility vehicle (SUV) in front of the private school on Friday morning. About eight hours later, a passerby discovered the child in a car seat and immediately dialed 911.
“I definitely feel confident that it was triple digits within that car at peak time of today,” the coroner affirmed. The child could have survived only minutes inside the car, according to Hartwell’s assessment.
In response to the tragedy, Bishop England cancelled its Friday night football game and classes on Monday.
“We ask that you please keep this family and our school community in your prayers during this unspeakably difficult time,” Bishop England High School President Patrick Finneran wrote in an email to families.
Hartwell mentioned that police investigators will carry out interviews and subsequently present their findings to the county solicitor’s office.
