5-year-old boy dies after he's found in hot car outside Texas elementary school

Authored by abcnews.go.com and submitted by wiredwilde
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The temperature was in the triple digits in Hidalgo County, Texas.

A 5-year-old boy died after he was found in a hot car outside a South Texas elementary school, officials said.

A 911 call came in at 4:04 p.m. Thursday reporting that an unresponsive boy was found inside a car parked at Dr. Americo Paredes Elementary, La Joya Independent School District Police Chief Raul Gonzalez said at a news conference Friday.

The temperature climbed to 101 degrees in Hidalgo County on Thursday, with a heat index -- what temperature it feels like with humidity -- of 105 degrees.

The little boy was a relative of a campus staff member, Gonzalez said. The boy, whose name was not released, was also a student in the district, according to La Joya Independent School District Superintendent Dr. Gisela Saenz.

"I want to assure parents and our community that our schools are safe. This was an isolated incident," Saenz said at the news conference. "We're providing support to our students and staff with additional counseling services."

His death came on the elementary school's ninth day of the new year.

This marks the 19th child to die from a hot car in the U.S. so far this year, according to national nonprofit KidsAndCars.org.

More than 1,000 kids have died in hot cars since 1990, the organization said.

Click here for tips to keep your kids safe in hot cars.

ThatDarnScat on August 27th, 2022 at 18:09 UTC »

I went through this scare when my son was almost 1 and I was sleep deprived. Most scared I have ever been in my entire life. Shaking in my friggin boots when I was running to my car after remembering it was my day to drop him off at daycare but didn't remember doing it.

Turns out I did drop him off (muscle memory), but somehow forgot to sign him in and I noticed he wasn't signed in during my first break.

Hes 4 now and knows how to unbuckle and lock/unlock the doors.

From then on, I've left my phone and ID in the backseat before driving anywhere with him.

I can't image what this poor child went through.

Unique-Public-8594 on August 27th, 2022 at 15:10 UTC »

4p Thu. 911 call. Un-named 5 yo relative of staff member (and a student) found in car unresponsive. School year had recently started.

Temp: 101, “feels like” 105 considering humidity.

Location: Dr Americo Paredes Elementary School, Benson Palm Drive, Mission, Texas, US (near McAllen, near the border with Mexico)

19th child to die in hot car this year in US.

Snipgan on August 27th, 2022 at 15:06 UTC »

Wouldn’t take much, especially if the window wasn’t open and the AC wasn’t on.

Turns those cars into practically a sweltering oven. Make sure you don’t do the same!