Parents shouldn't be lax now that summer is over; there is never a better time of year to leave your child in the car. And for those who think it could never happen to them, we hope they take these stories seriously, as police have recently reported this year's 48th hot car death. An infant from Phoenix, Arizona, was left behind in the car while her school administrator foster father went to work, forgetting her in the back seat.
Temperatures were in the 90s on Tuesday, when the unnamed parent forgot the 4-month-old girl in the car after taking her to a doctor's appointment.
People reported the the dad has yet to be identified to the public, but he and his partner are adoptive and foster parents to several children. The tragic situation unfolded on Tuesday after the father dropped his kids off at day care at 7 a.m.
Hours later, he left work as a school administrator to pick up his 4-month-old foster daughter for a doctor's appointment, but when he returned to work at a Washington Elementary School District office building, he didn't drop her back off at day care. Instead, he reportedly forgot the infant girl in her car seat and drove to work, only realizing his mistake hours later at 3:30 p.m. when he was leaving.
Police responded to a call about the unresponsive infant but were unable to resuscitate the girl, and she was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to Phoenix Fire Department, she was beyond any life-saving measures when they arrived. It's still unclear if the dad will face charges for his mistake, but Phoenix Police Det. Luis Samudio spoke out on his behalf, calling the dad “a very good man.”
The investigation is ongoing, and more information will be available once the girl's autopsy has been performed.
“I understand he is a very good man. He is a parent to adopted children that he’s helped a lot, many other children that honestly don’t have parents,” Samudio said. “He and his wife are people that are always willing to help others.”
Unfortunately, this isn't the first time that a child has died by accidentally being left in the car.
In fact, the girl's death marks the 48th child this year to die from being in a hot car. KidsandCars.org reports that on average, 38 children die in hot cars each year (about one child every nine days) and more than 900 children have died in hot cars since 1990.
"Even the best of parents or caregivers can unknowingly leave a sleeping baby in a car; and the end result can be injury or even death," the website noted.
Meanwhile, officials at Washington Elementary School District released a statement on Tuesday evening, ABC News reported, expressing sympathy for the family: "Our hearts go out to our staff member, his family and all of his colleagues who are grieving this tragic loss."
