Infant found in car unattended
A Hoedspruit resident, Charlene van der Merwe, was shocked to discover a small baby left unattended in a car parked in Pick and Pay’s parking lot.
The car’s windows were open a fraction and the doors were unlocked. Van der Merwe removed the child from the car and attempted to find the mother.
According to her, the baby was sweaty and confused but wasn’t crying. Due to the doors being unlocked, Van der Merwe had no problem in removing the baby.
The Pick and Pay car guards found the child’s mother and returned to the car where Charlene van der Merwe was waiting.
She confronted the mother and the woman seemed shocked and at a loss for words.
There are dozens of warnings on social media and the internet of how unsafe it is to leave a small child unattended in a vehicle.
According to Child Care South Africa, neglect is deliberately not providing for a child’s physical needs (such as food, warmth, shelter or protection from danger).
Failure to seek, follow through with medical care, failure to make provision for the child’s education. Also, leaving children alone at home or in a car.
More than 600 U.S. children have died that way since 1990, according to the nonprofit safety group Kids and Cars.
Residents are urged to keep in mind the fact that our local temperatures make it very dangerous to leave a small child unattended in a vehicle.
