Mother arrested for leaving child inside locked vehicle
EL CENTRO — A woman was arrested Thursday afternoon after she reportedly left her 2-year-old child locked inside of a parked vehicle at Ross Dress for Less on North Imperial Avenue.
At approximately 12:21 p.m. Thursday, El Centro Fire Department was dispatched to the area and found the child in a 2010 Buick SUV, which was not running, locked and had the windows rolled up.
Fire personnel immediately broke out a window to rescue the child, who was found in the back seat unresponsive. The child was not buckled into a car seat at the time, El Centro Police Department Cmdr. Alvaro Ramirez stated.
The child was immediately treated for heat exhaustion and, within minutes, the child soon became responsive.
Gold Cross Ambulance transported the child to El Centro Regional Medical Center, El Centro Fire Department Battalion Chief Raul Ojeda stated.
The ambient temperature at the time was well over 100 degrees, and the temperature inside the vehicle was estimated to be over 140 degrees, an El Centro Police Department news release stated.
El Centro police officers eventually found the child’s mother at the store and arrested her for endangering the life of her child. According to scanner traffic, officers located the mother at 12:34 p.m. Thursday.
“I have to give the person who found the child and called 911 some praise,” Ojeda stated. “If it was not for her, the outcome in my opinion could have been very different.”
An investigation into the incident continues, and officers have sought the assistance of Child Protective Services.
“We want to thank our community members that called in to report this life-threatening situation,” ECPD Executive Cmdr. Alvaro Ramirez stated. “Without your help, the end result could have been even more tragic. We also want to thank our fire department as well as Child Protective Services that helped us fulfill our commitment to serve our community.”
The El Centro Police Department reminded the community Thursday that “summer is upon us, and we all have to make sure we are careful to stay hydrated and take special care of those that depend on us to keep them safe from the heat.”