1-year-old left in hot van at daycare dies, cops say. ‘How did you forget my baby?’
A 1-year-old died after being left in a hot van outside her daycare, Nebraska police say.
Officers found the child unresponsive in a van Monday, Aug. 21, outside Kidz of the Future Childcare, according to the Omaha Police Department. The toddler, identified in a GoFundMe as Ra’Miyah Worthington, died after being taken to a hospital, police said.
Police said Tuesday the driver of the van, 62-year-old Ryan Williams, was arrested and faces charges of child abuse by neglect resulting in death.
The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services temporarily closed Kidz of the Future Childcare on Tuesday as the investigation into Ra’Miyah’s death continued.
“The protection and well-being of children is of the highest priority by the Department of Health and Human Services and we are working with law enforcement as they investigate this tragic death,” the department said in a statement to KETV. “In addition, an emergency order has been put in place temporarily closing the facility until further investigations can take place.”
Rianna Worthington, Ra’Miyah’s father, said the driver picked up his three children but only removed two of them from the van., according to WOWT.
“How can you forget a kid that you yourself put into the vehicle, but you took the other two off?” the father said. “How do you forget one when you take two off the van? How did you forget my baby?”
It’s believed Ra’Miyah was left in the van for five to six hours, Douglas County Chief Deputy Attorney Brenda Beadle told the Associated Press.
Outside temperatures reached 99 degrees Monday in Omaha, according to the National Weather Service. There was a heat index of 114 degrees.
Hot car deaths
More than 950 children have died in hot cars since 1998, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
“About 40 children a year die from heatstroke, either because they were left or became trapped in a car,” officials said. “That’s about one child every 10 days killed in a hot car.”
Hot car deaths are most common in the summer heat, but they can happen at any time, according to the administration. The first “vehicular heatstroke” of the year typically happens in March.
“Leaving a window open is not enough — temperatures inside the car can rise almost 20 degrees Fahrenheit within the first 10 minutes, even with a window cracked open,” the Centers for Disease Control said.
If you see a child alone in a vehicle, officials said you should immediately call 911 and make sure the child is responsive.
This story was originally published August 22, 2023 at 1:02 PM with the headline "1-year-old left in hot van at daycare dies, cops say. ‘How did you forget my baby?’."