Carpentras, France: Children, aged 2 and 4, die in heatwave after becoming trapped inside car
The two and four year olds became trapped inside a family car as temperatures soared.
Two young children have died after being trapped inside a car during a brutal heatwave.
The pair, aged two and four, were found unresponsive on Monday in the family car, which was parked in a French residential parking lot, according to Le Parisien.
The car was in the courtyard of the children’s grandmother’s house, in the town of Carpentras in south-east France.
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Attempts by emergency services to resuscitate the children were unsuccessful.
A translated quote from firefighters said they found “two children in cardiac arrest after receiving a call around 1.20pm”.
While it is not clear how the children ended up trapped inside the vehicle, initial reports suggest they locked themselves inside after their mother suggested they go and play.
Carpentras’ prosecutor Hélène Mourges said they “allegedly locked themselves” inside the car unbeknownst to their mother.
“The causes of death are yet to be determined, but the heat is the leading line of inquiry,” she said.
A manslaughter investigation is now underway.
A police source told Le Parisien that the mother had “forgotten her children” while shopping.
“Given her condition, no interview has been possible at this time,” Ms Mourges said, according to The Mirror.
The children’s deaths come as record heat sweeps across much of Europe.
In France, forty people have drowned in recent days as they sought to cool down to escape the heatwave.
Much of France is under severe heat alert and set to experience temperatures about 40C on Tuesday, Meteo France said, with temperatures of up to 43C expected in some parts of western France.
The country has just recorded its hottest afternoon and night since records began in 1947, and 54 departments are under red alert in what forecasters said was unprecedented.
Meteo France said conditions were comparable to the August 2003 heatwave, which lasted 16 days and led to an estimated 80,000 excess deaths across Europe, according to the EU.
Britain is also in the grip of the heat, with the Met Office forecasting temperatures of up to 37C in southern England on Tuesday - potentially a June record - before rising further on Wednesday and Thursday.
Dozens of schools plan early closures, citing buildings ill-suited to the heat.
Britain’s Network Rail warned passengers to travel only if necessary later this week as temperatures approach 39C, with speed restrictions likely to disrupt services.
Spain’s meteorological agency has issued red alerts across parts of the country, warning of dangerous heat with temperatures expected to reach 44C.
Night-time has brought little relief, with about 30 monitoring stations still recording temperatures above 25C early on Tuesday.
With Reuters.
