A 3-year-old boy was found dead in the back of a day care center's van Monday after family members became concerned that the child was not dropped off at home that evening, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
Police said that Myles Hill had been in the day care's van for almost 12 hours with temperatures in Orlando hitting the 90s with a heat index over 100 degrees, the newspaper said. The driver at Little Miracles Academy dropped off other kids about 9 a.m., and the boy's body was found at 8:30 p.m.
"This is your worst nightmare come true," Orlando Police Chief John Mina, told the Orlando Sentinel. Authorities said charges are pending against the driver. Police told the Sentinel that the van's driver did not do a head count after finishing her driving round.
During a candlelight vigil Tuesday, the boy's mother, Chiel Banks, said she wanted someone to be held responsible for her son's death, WFTV reported.
"My baby is 3 years old. He's 3," Banks said, per the television station. "He's going to be 4 on the 22nd of this month and he's not going to have a birthday.
"… When he was little, he would say, like, 'Oh, mommy, that's the sky,' like he knew everything. So I used to always call him my baby genius, cause he knew everything. So, I want justice for my baby," Banks continued.
Barbara Livingston, a family member, told the Sentinel that they started calling the day care about 8 p.m. when the boy had not made it home. After failing to receive an answer, the boy's grandmother called police and went to the day care herself and saw the boy in the van, the Sentinel said.
"This is an absolute tragedy which could have been prevented," Mina told the newspaper. He said the likely cause of death will be heat-related but an autopsy will be performed to confirm.
The day care posted signs stating that it was "closed until further notice," the Sentinel reported. Its owners Audrey and Bryant Thornton have not commented publicly on the incident.
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