Child left in car in blistering heat

AUSTIN (KXAN) - A mother admits to leaving her 5-month-old son in the car while she shopped.

According to police reports, officers found the little boy left inside of a car with the windows rolled up and only the sunroof open on June 27. The temperature at the time was 98 degrees.

Police saw the baby and were able to get him out through an unlocked door. The little boy was crying and had visible beads of sweat on his face, which was reddening from the heat.

"The officer on scene saw the child sweating and screaming as it was strapped into the carseat," said Corporal Scott Perry with the Austin Police Department.

The police officer quickly put the child in her air-conditioned car and called EMS. When EMS arrived, Maria Elena Aguilera-Carrillo, 20, approached the officer. She was later identified as the little boy's mother.

Aguilera-Carrillo admitted through a translator that she shopped at three different stores while the baby was outside. She said she left the baby around 7:30 p.m. and her last purchase was at 8:11 p.m.

"She didn't forget the child," said Cpl. Perry.  "She knew the baby was in the car. She went shopping. She  thought it was OK because she left the sun roof open on the car. Obviously it was still very hot inside the car."

The little boy had a 101.5-degree fever when taken to Dell Children's Hospital for heat exhaustion.

"Drivers need to understand that a vehicle is not a babysitter, but it can quickly become an oven," said Tareka Wheeler coordinator of Safe Kids Austin led by Dell Children's Medical Center "A child under 10 should never be left alone in or around a vehicle, even for a minute. When it comes to the safety of a child, there’s just too much to lose."

Heat is much more dangerous to children than it is to adults. When left in a hot vehicle, a young child’s core body temperature may increase three to five times faster than that of an adult. This could cause permanent injury or even death.

"A completely closed car is just like an oven," said Dr. T.J. Milling. "If a child is in a car in bright sunlight, their temperature is going to go up drastically in just a few minutes- within 20 minutes they could be at 115 or more degrees."

Heat stroke occurs when the core body temperature reaches 104 degrees. A core body temperature of 107 degrees is considered lethal.

"The inside of a vehicle can rise 19 degrees above the outside temperature in just 10 minutes," said Tareka Wheeler. "After an hour, the temperature inside and outside of a vehicle can differ by 45 degrees or more – even if the window is left open a crack."

Aguilera-Carrillo was arrested and charged with abandoned/endangered child imminent danger, a first-degree felony.

In 2008, at least 42 children across the United States died from heatstroke caused by being left or trapped in a vehicle.