HOUSTON – Police are investigating after a 4-year-old girl died after being left unattended in a vehicle in northwest Houston.
Northwest officers are at 6500 Hollister. Four year old female is deceased at the hospital after being left in a vehicle unattended. Investigation underway. 202 pic.twitter.com/xTTeUQaG56
— Houston Police (@houstonpolice) July 4, 2024
The Houston Police Department said it happened in the 6500 block of Hollister Rd. near Wilshire Pl. Dr.
According to Lt. Larry Crowson with HPD, police were called around 6:30 p.m. on a report of a child who was in a car and having a heat-related illness.
Officers and the Houston Fire Department responded. They arrived and found the girl in a pickup truck. She was rushed to the hospital, where investigators say she passed away.
According to Crowson, two women and a total of three children were initially in the pickup truck. They got out and went inside an apartment.
“Apparently in the confusion, they left the 4-year-old female in the truck. Once they discovered the child was missing, they went back outside, found the child and called the police department and the fire department,” Crowson said.
Officers are currently looking for surveillance video of the incident. Once the investigation is completed, the case will be turned over to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office who will decide whether any charges are filed.
Crowson stressed the importance of being aware of your children’s location and noted it only takes a few minutes in this weather for heat-related illness to strike.
“Be very cognizant of where your children are. It’s very easy to get confused and lose track but you know it is very important that you don’t. In this type of weather, it doesn’t take but a few minutes for the heat to cause very serious illness or death to someone that’s left in a car,” he said.