Two-year-old boy dies inside hot van parked outside Florida daycare center as temperature reaches 90 degrees
OAKLAND PARK, FLORIDA: A 2-year-old boy was found dead on Monday, July 29, inside a van parked outside an Oakland Park daycare center as temperatures soared to the 90s in the afternoon, authorities said.
Around 3.20 pm on Monday, emergency responders were called to the scene outside Ceressa's Enrichment and Empowerment Academy in Oakland Park, Florida, after daycare staff discovered the child's lifeless body inside a white Ford van.
“At this point, we don’t know why the boy remained inside the vehicle, but, evidently, he ultimately succumbed to the environment in which he remained inside that van,” Broward County Sheriff's spokesperson Keyla Concepcion was quoted as saying.
Authorities said hot weather in the area might have played a role in the death as temperatures in the area were reported to have been in the low 90s.
Speaking to WSVN, Concepcion said, “We know at some time earlier today, the boy was transported to this facility inside that van.” "What happened once they arrived here is under investigation. You would think that any facility that deals with children — especially young children — would have some kind of checks and balances or some kind of system. Unfortunately, it's not the first time that we've heard of a case like this happening."
Health experts say a child’s body can heat up three to five times faster than an adult’s and this can cause major organs to begin to shut down, WSVN reported.
Horrified parents whose children attend the daycare rushed to the scene after the deceased child's body was captured in news footage.
Meanwhile, no arrests have been made so far and authorities also haven't released the name of the driver of the van.
This is the latest tragedy in a series of recent incidents involving one or more children dying after being left in hot vehicles.
Phoenix resident Juan Rodriguez, who accidentally left his one-year-old twins Luna and Phoenix in the back of his vehicle for eight hours in 108-degree weather, pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide charges on Friday.