4-Year-Old Calls 911 After Being Locked in a Hot Car With Six Other Kids

One 4-year-old’s quick thinking could have single-handedly saved his life as well as the lives of six other young children.

A Maryland mother left the kids locked inside a car while she went inside a nearby mall to shop, according to the police report. Two of the kids were her own, and she had been babysitting the additional five children for the day. Temperatures in the area were in the high 70s that day, according to AccuWeather. After the car started to heat up, the kids were “scared” and “sweaty,” WJLA reports. That’s when the 4-year-old used a phone left in the car to dial 911 and tell Charles County officers they were trapped.

Although the youngster didn’t know where they were, officers were able to use GPS to locate them. The 37-year-old mother arrived about 10 minutes after officers made it to the scene, and had been inside the mall for at least 20 minutes. She was charged with confinement of children inside a motor vehicle and additional charges are pending.

Luckily, the preschooler was able to keep them from harm’s way, but the day could have easily had a horrific ending. Last year, 52 children died from being left in a hot car—the deadliest year on record in the past 20 years, according to the National Safety Council (NSC).

Please note: The Bump and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, medical or other health advice or diagnosis and should not be used as such. You should always consult with a qualified physician or health professional about your specific circumstances.