Tragedy as girl, 5, dies after being ‘left in hot car outside home when family forgot she was there after school’

A YOUNG girl has been found dead after her family allegedly forgot about her and left the child in a boiling hot car.

Family members reported the five-year-old as missing before finding her unresponsive inside a car in Garland, Texas, police say.

A residential street with parked cars on both sides and a dark sedan turning into the street. — **The tragedy unfolded on Redbird Drive in Garland, Texas**Credit: WFAA

Officer Matt Pesta of the Garland Police Department speaking. — **Garland Police have launched an investigation into the girl’s death**Credit: WFAA

Emergency services raced to the scene on Redbird Drive at around 8:20pm on Tuesday to find the youngster in a state of medical emergency.

Cops said the girl and her sibling had been picked up from school by an adult family member – her sibling got out, but the five-year-old did not.

The girl had just started school confirmed the local school district.

Family began searching for her – and then tragically found her still inside the car. Police say she could have been inside for hours.

CPR was performed and she was rushed to a local hospital – but tragically could not be saved.

Police have now launched an investigation into the child’s death.

“There are no words to describe how devastating this can be”, said Officer Matt Pesta, from the Garland Police Department.

He explained: “They started looking everywhere, right? Like you would a child, and then they started looking outside. Is she out there playing? You know, where’s she at? And then somebody located her still in the vehicle.”

**Emergency services rushed the youngster to hospital**Credit: Getty

Downtown Garland — **Garland was under an extreme heat warning at the time of the girl’s death**Credit: Getty

No charges have yet been filed.

Counselling support has been offered to the family, police added.

Garland, Texas is currently under an extreme heat weather warning.

So far this year 23 children have died across the US in hot cars, according to data from the National Safety Council.

Last year a reported 34 children died in hot cars, including eight in Texas.

“The death is another wake up call for parents” Amber Rollins Executive Director of charity Kids and Car Safety told CBS.

“One of the biggest contributing factors to children being unknowingly left in vehicles is a shift in that normal daily routine. It doesn’t have to be anything huge.”

Chloe Burke, from the same charity, told KBTX: “Most of these cases are a mix of stress or fatigue, and then a change in routine. This is not a lapse of love. It’s just a lapse of memory, and you know, this could really happen to anyone.”