3 kids suffer heat stroke after being left in cars; 2-year-old in critical condition

Three children were hospitalized with signs of heat stroke Thursday after being left in cars “for an extended period,” in two separate incidents in the area of Hadera in central Israel, the Magen David Adom ambulance service said.

A 5-year-old boy and a 2-year-old girl were found shortly before 5 p.m. in a car in the nearby town of Elyakhin, and taken to Hadera’s Hillel Yaffe Hospital in a state of “hazy consciousness” and unstable, serious condition, MDA said. Another 2-year-old girl was found unconscious in a car in Hadera some two hours later and was taken to the hospital in critical condition, according to MDA.

Police located the children in Elyakhin after being alerted that they had gone missing, according to a police statement. Officers also arrived on the scene in Hadera after medical services alerted them that a small girl was found in a car in critical condition, police said.

Both cases are under investigation, police said, adding a warning to parents to make sure they don’t forget children in cars. The warning urged drivers to always check the car before locking it and hold on to their car keys to avoid getting locked out.

“If you notice a child locked in a car without supervision — contact the police’s 100 telephone hotline immediately and without delay,” the statement said.

Toddlers dying after being forgotten in vehicles is a repeated occurrence in Israel, where temperatures in locked cars can soar to 70°C (160°F) — a level that can prove dangerous to children even over brief periods.

According to the Beterem – Safe Kids Israel organization, between 2010-2020, 34 babies and children in Israel died after they were left unattended in parked and locked cars.