1-year-old dies after being left in hot car outside a Walgreens in Georgia for hours
A 1-year-old has died after being left inside a hot car parked outside a Walgreens store in Danielsville, Georgia.
Local police said officers responded to reports of "an unresponsive child" at a Walgreens store in Danielsville, which is about 16 miles northeast of Athens, early Thursday afternoon.
According to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, which is assisting Danielsville police in the case, the child's mother worked at the Walgreens store.
The sheriff’s office estimates the baby was inside the hot car for three or fours hours before the mother discovered the child in the vehicle, WXIA, NBC's Atlanta affiliate, reported. Authorities believe the inside car temperature was over 100 degrees.
The 1-year-old received emergency aid before being rushed to a hospital in Athens, where the child was eventually pronounced dead, WXIA reported.
This is the third child to die inside a hot car in Georgia since the beginning of the year, according to the Kids and Car Safety nonprofit organization, which tracks such deaths. Two of those deaths happened this week.
The mother employed at the Walgreens told investigators she normally drops her two children at separate daycare centers before going to work, the Athens Banner-Herald, a local newspaper, reported. On Thursday, the 30-year-old woman accidentally left one of her children inside the car.
The mother did not realize she never stopped at the second day care center before arriving at work, the Athens Banner-Herald reported.
An investigation into the child's death remains ongoing.
The sheriff’s office said it’s working with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to process evidence, WXIA reported. The office has also been in touch with the Northern Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office to determine if any charges are warranted.
