7-Month Old Baby Dies In Hot Car After Father Forgets To Drop Him At Babysitter

HOUSTON, TX —Police are investigating after a 7-month old baby died after being left for several hours in a hot car by his father.

Police were called to the 7900 block of Northcourt Road Friday evening for a report of a child who was not breathing.

According to police, the baby’s father took his three children with him when he left home at about 7:30 a.m. (Want to get daily updates about traffic news and other events going on in your area? Sign up for the free Houston Patch morning newsletter.)

The 36-year old father dropped two of the children off at daycare, but forgot to take the baby to a sitter, and drove into his work in northwest Houston at about 9:30 a.m. Friday.

According to a Houston Chronicle report, the man’s wife called him at 7:30 p.m. to ask why the baby wasn’t dropped off at the sitter, and that’s when he went out and found the child still in his car seat.

Houston Firefighters and police arrived at the scene a short time later, but it was too late and 7-month old Justin Huynh was pronounced dead, KHOU reported.

The baby’s father was questioned by police, and released pending the outcome of an investigation.

Dr. Bob Sanborn, president and CEO of Children at Risk, an organization that works to raise awareness about the dangers of leaving children in hot cars, compared the inside of a car in summertime to being in a sauna.

"We need to understand that cars can be killers and cars can be very dangerous when you combine them with heat,” Sanborn told KPRC.

The incident is expected to be presented to an Harris County Grand Jury.

Image: Renee Schavione

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