A 2-year-old has died in Alabama, possibly from being left in a hot car, and two men in Florida who were found passed out from being under the influence of alcohol while two kids lay unresponsive in the back seat of their hot car, according to police.
The deadly incident in Alabama took place Thursday night in Huntsville. The 2-year-old’s parent was driving, but pulled over when they realized something was wrong, Huntsville Police spokesman Lt. Michael Johnson told ABC News.
The toddler, who appeared to die in the car, had been “left in the car for a lengthy time during the day at another location,” Johnson said.
The temperature in Huntsville reached 86 degrees on Thursday.
“At this time, this is being ruled as an accidental death possibly due to being left inside the car,” Johnson said Friday, adding that “an exact cause [has] yet to be determined by the coroner.”
The parent was not arrested, Johnson said.
At least 36 children have died from being inside hot cars this year in the United States, according to the organization KidsandCars.org.
Meanwhile, last week in Sarasota, Florida, a grandfather and father were found passed out in a hot car under the influence of alcohol. They had two young children inside, according to police.
Paul Houle, 51, and Paul Houle III, 22, were both passed out in the front seats of a parked car on Aug. 17 when a passerby saw two kids unresponsive in the back seat and called 911, the Sarasota Police Department said.
The car, which was parked directly in the sun, had all the windows up with no air conditioning running, police said.
They had been in the car for about 25 to 30 minutes, witnesses told police.
The men told responders that the children, ages 4 and 2, were left in their care, police said.
The adults and children, who are all related, were pale and sweating, and taken to a hospital, police said.
Officers found two bottles of alcohol and an open beer in the car, and “51-year-old Houle was in possession of Dextroamphetamine, a schedule two controlled substance,” police said in a statement Thursday.
The father and grandfather were both arrested; 51-year-old Houle was charged with child neglect without great bodily harm and possession of a controlled substance, while 22-year-old Houle was charged with child neglect without great bodily harm.
Both children recovered and were released to the Department of Children and Families, police said.
