HOUSTON, Texas — The sun was still shining at about 6:30 Wednesday evening when police responded to a distress call at an apartment complex on Hollister Road in northwest Houston. They found a four-year-old girl unresponsive in a pickup truck.
“That female was taken to the hospital and, unfortunately, passed away there,” said HPD Lt. Larry Crowson.
Police suspect there was a misunderstanding between two women who entered an apartment with several children and didn’t realize the girl was still in the truck until it was too late. HPD did not specify how long the girl had been inside the vehicle.
“In this weather, even a few minutes can lead to severe illness or death for someone left in a car,” Crowson emphasized.
One neighbor, a mother herself, shared on Thursday that the news deeply affected her.
“I don’t understand what goes through people’s minds when they do these things,” she said. “I don’t know if it’s forgetfulness.”
Experts warn that in the Texas heat — with temperatures in the 90s and high humidity on Wednesday — it takes only a short time for a vehicle to become dangerously hot.
“Your state has had the highest number of these tragedies in the country by a significant margin,” noted Amber Rollins, Director of Kids and Cars Safety.
The nonprofit has documented 156 hot car deaths in Texas from 1990 to 2023, the highest in the nation.
“A car acts like a greenhouse,” Rollins explained. “Sunlight enters through the windows, heating up the vehicle very rapidly. Most of the temperature rise occurs within the first 10 minutes.”
Just last summer, Texas saw at least three deaths due to hot cars, including an infant in Houston whose mother left him unattended while visiting a medical clinic.
“As a mother, it breaks my heart,” remarked the neighbor regarding the recent incident.
The Harris County District Attorney’s office will decide on any potential charges in this case.
Experts recommend placing a personal item like a purse, wallet, or phone in the backseat to avoid forgetting children. They also advise teaching children of all ages how to unbuckle seat belts, honk the horn, and activate hazard lights to attract attention if needed.