A 2-year-old girl was found dead in the back seat of a car in a New Jersey driveway after she may have been left in there for more than seven hours on an especially warm summer day, according to sources and neighbors.
The child, who neighbors said was a young girl, was found around 2 p.m. Tuesday in a car parked outside a Franklin Township home, law enforcement sources with knowledge of the situation told NBC New York. Police opened the doors to the car, and made the grim discovery.
Neighbors on the quiet suburban street said it appeared that the parents did not realize the child had been in the car. They said that officers knocked on the front door of the home after finding the child, and described hearing the pain from the parents after they learned.
"They were just screaming in pain and anguish. She collapsed to the ground and he went to console her," said a neighbor. "They’re great parents. I’ve seen them be very loving and doting on their daughters."
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Another neighbor said that the child's mother was taken away in an ambulance after collapsing on the front lawn.
"How can that happen? How do you forget? I guess we’re all forgetful, I’ve forgotten things in the car. But how do you forget the toddler, you know? I don’t know," said neighbor Alex Krstavski.
Law enforcement officials said it was unclear if the toddler was in a car seat.
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“Authorities have notified the New Jersey Northern Regional Medical Examiner’s Office who will be responding to conduct the investigation. No further details will be released at this time while investigators conduct their investigation," Deputy Chief Frank Roman said in a statement.
Roman added that it's unclear if the vehicle was locked or unlocked. The car was towed away hours later, with just a single bouquet of flowers left in the driveway to mark the scene of the tragedy.
It was not clear who was supposed to be watching the child at the time. An organization called Kids and Car Safety said there have been 22 hot car deaths across the U.S. in 2022, including Tuesday's incident. Sue Auriemma, who is with the group, said she is pushing to make warning systems mandatory in all new cars/
"This is the kind of tragedy that doesn’t discriminate. It has to do with a failure of the brain’s memory, in many cases," said Auriemma. "Unfortunately the worst mistake a parent can make is thinking this can’t happen to them."
An investigation into what happened is underway.
