A couple intervened to rescue a 22-month-old child who had been left alone in a locked car at a Whole Foods parking lot in Hingham, Massachusetts, according to the local police. The incident occurred on September 1 after the couple parked next to the vehicle and heard a child screaming for their mother.
The Hingham Police Department reported on Facebook that the child’s mother, age 44, was shopping in several stores while her child remained in the back seat of her car. The engine was off and all doors were locked. The couple noticed that the sunroof was open and used it to enter the vehicle, unlock the doors, and remove the child.
When officers arrived at the scene, they found the child “hot and profusely sweating.” Police placed the child in an air-conditioned patrol car before paramedics transported them to a hospital by ambulance. No information about the child’s condition has been released.
The mother told officers she believed her child was napping and claimed she checked on them while shopping. Police noted that although it was 73 degrees outside at the time, heatstroke can still occur when temperatures are below 70 degrees.
The mother is facing a charge of reckless endangerment of a child. Hingham is located about 20 miles southeast of Boston.
