Mother is a school teacher.
By Raif Karerat
WASHINGTON, DC: An 18-month-old infant girl has died after being inadvertently left in a car for several hours at an elementary school in Panama City, Florida, while her mother taught inside, according to a press release from the Bay County Sheriff’s Office.
Jamie Buckley did not discover her daughter, Reagan, until about 3:15 p.m. after having been in the car since before 7:30 a.m., said Frank McKeithen, Bay County sheriff. The child was pronounced dead at the scene.
Multiple outlets, including The Washington Post and USA Today, cited Weather Underground’s report that temperatures in Panama City hit 83 degrees Fahrenheit by Tuesday afternoon.
Once outside temperatures reach 80 to 100 degrees, temperatures inside a car can climb up to 131 to 172 degrees, according to a 1998 case study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“At 83 degrees outside, even with a window rolled down 2 inches, the inside temperature can reach 109 degrees in 15 minutes,” noted USA Today.
The death is at least the third child death from heatstroke so far this year, according to the advocacy organization KidsAndCars.org.
No charges have been filed in the case yet, but Reagan’s body has been turned over to the Bay County Medical Examiner’s Office and an investigation is ongoing, Sheriff McKeithen stated.
“Our hearts and prayers are with the family and the school,†Superintendent Bill Husfelt of Bay District Schools told the Panama City News Herald.
At least 30 children died in hot car-related incidents last year according to the San Jose University Department of Meteorology & Climate Science, while KidsAndCars.org attests more than 700 children have died from heatstroke after being left in the back of a car or sometimes climbing into an unlocked hot car and not being able to get out.