Today’s story of a brave 4-year-old comes from St. Charles in Charles County, Maryland, USA – where a mother left seven children in her two-door car with the windows rolled up as she went shopping. It was 80 degrees outside, and the children started sweating and getting hot. One of the seven children, a 4-year-old, called 911, and they were all rescued.
A Brave Young Boy
The 37-year-old mother of this story went shopping at a mall in St. Charles, leaving seven children in the car, windows rolled up. The doors were left unlocked, but the kids were told not to leave the car no matter what. All of them, being good kids, listened to her and stayed in the car to wait for her.
She was inside for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, the children started getting sweaty and scared outside in the car. Fearing for the worst, a 4-year-old boy in the car dialed 911 and told them their situation. Luckily, help soon arrived, and the kids were taken out of the car. Things could’ve turned out much worse had it not been for the little boy calling for help. Children’s bodies react differently to heat than adults – heat exhaustion can lead to anything.
According to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office:
“Charles County 911 received a call from a child indicating he and six other children were inside a car unattended and hot. The child was not sure where they were. Through GPS and other mechanisms, the call-taker was able to pinpoint the location of the vehicle to the St. Charles Towne Center and officers were directed to the scene.”
Even after leaving the kids outside in a hot car for twenty minutes, she arrived ten minutes after help had arrived. She’s now facing charges.
“The driver of the car, a 37-year-old woman, arrived at her vehicle about ten minutes later. Through investigation, officers were able to determine she had been inside the mall for at least twenty minutes shopping. The woman, who is the mother of two of the children and babysitting the others, was charged with confinement of children inside a motor vehicle. Officers conferred with the Charles County State’s Attorney’s Office and additional charges are pending. The Department of Social Services responded and are assisting in this investigation. Due to the nature of the crime and to protect the victims, the name of the woman is not being released at this time.”
“As a reminder, it is against the law to leave a child under the age of eight unattended inside a motor vehicle if the caregiver is out of sight of the child unless a reliable person at least 13-years-old remains with the child. It is also dangerous to leave anyone, including pets, inside a motor vehicle especially as outside temperatures become warmer. The temperature inside a parked car can quickly rise to extremely high and even fatal levels in a short period of time.”
Parents and caregivers – please do not leave your children outside in a car with the windows rolled up; it can lead to life-threatening events for the kids like suffocation and heat exhaustion, among a list of other things.
Please either take them inside with you or leave the AC on. Take every possible precaution when children are involved; shopping can wait. Our hats go off to this brave little boy who could make quick decisions and call for help.
What are your thoughts on this brave boy saving multiple lives? Talk to us in the comments below!
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