Video footage circulating online captured the dramatic rescue of a baby that was stuck inside a locked vehicle on a scorching summer day.
The incident took place in a grocery store parking lot in Harlingen, a city located near the southernmost tip of Texas, on July 19, according to Today.com.
Harlingen police said the baby’s parents accidentally locked themselves out of their vehicle while the baby was still strapped in the car seat. The temperature that day had soared to 101 degrees, making it vital to remove the child from the vehicle as quickly as possible, Fox News reported.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, over 950 children have died of heat stroke since 1998 after being left inside a hot vehicle.
The internal temperature inside a vehicle can rise by 20 degrees in just 10 minutes, making it dangerous to leave a child — or a pet — inside, even when outside temperatures are in the mid 60s. Moreover, children’s body temperatures can increase three to five times quicker than those of adults.
Video footage taken by a woman on the scene captured the moment that at least one bystander rallied with the parents to shatter the front windshield using whatever tools they could find.
@lindahdz91 Baby locked in car.. hope baby is okay not sure who vehicle or whos baby it is #awarness #baby #harlingen #956
A break in the video missed the moment a woman climbed into the vehicle through the busted windshield, according to Fox News. The footage picks up again as she hands the child off to safety.
“A male and female accidentally locked the keys in their car, with their infant child still in the vehicle. The father of the child can be seen in the video breaking the front windshield to make entry into the vehicle. Once the child was removed from the vehicle, EMS was on scene, and evaluated the child, who was fine,” said Harlingen Police Department Sgt. Larry Moore, speaking with Today.com.
Multiple news reports subsequently noted that the parents would not be facing any criminal charges. Another couple in Florida, however, was not so lucky.
Parents of three children, Joel and Jazmine Rondon, face aggravated manslaughter charges after allegedly forgetting their 18-month-old girl in the car overnight upon returning home from a Fourth of July party.
The child died, and both parents subsequently tested positive for alcohol and marijuana, with Joel’s also suggesting he may have done methamphetamine, according to CBS News.
Heat-related illnesses have spiked in Dallas County, one of many communities across the world currently experiencing brutal heatwaves, as recently reported by The Dallas Express.
The National Weather Service in Fort Worth issued several heat advisories earlier this week and urges residents of North Texas to practice heat safety as high temperatures continue into next week.
