A 15-month-old died after being found unresponsive in a hot car in Bethlehem, Pa., marking the sixth hot car fatality in the United States this year.
Emergency crews responded to a call shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday, where the toddler was found inside her father’s vehicle, according to local news station WFMZ. An investigation into the incident was underway.
Thursday was one of the hottest days so far this year in eastern Pennsylvania, with temperatures nearby reaching 93 degrees during the afternoon. Due to the greenhouse effect of the glass windows of a vehicle, temperatures inside could have reached nearly 110 degrees in as little as 10 minutes.
The tragedy marked the sixth child hot car death so far in 2026 across the United States, according to Kids and Car Safety.
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The incident was the first child hot car death in Pennsylvania since 2023 and the first reported across the country so far this month.
“The average number of U.S. child hot car deaths is nearly 40 annually. (One every nine days),” Kids and Car Safety said on its website. “Eighty-six percent of children who have died in a hot car are age 3 and younger.”
Parents and caregivers are urged to create habits to help keep children safe. “To enforce this habit, place an item that you can’t start your day without in the back seat (employee badge, laptop, phone, handbag, etc.),” the organization said on its website. Vehicles should also be locked at all times to avoid children from inadvertently entering a hot vehicle.
