UPDATED: Baby Dies in Hot Car in Ridgefield Monday

Ridgefield police are investigating the death of a 15-month-old child left in a hot vehicle Monday.

The young boy was reportedly left alone in a parked car for “an extended period of time,” according to Ridgefield Capt. Jeffrey Kreitz. Police were notified of the death around 6 p.m. Monday evening.

Kreitz said Tuesday that the official cause of death has not yet been determined and the investigation is ongoing

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this difficult time,” he said.

Hard figures on the number of past infant deaths in cars in Ridgefield were not immediately available Tuesday, however Ridgefield police could not recall an incident in recent memory.

Deadly Summer Heat

Nearly 40 children die on average each year from being left in vehicles that overheat, with at least 20 cases reported so far this summer.

Temperatures inside a car can rise quickly in the summer, going up 20 degrees in just 10 minutes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NTSA).

The inside of a car is also much hotter than the air outside, the NTSA warns. Temperatures around 60 degrees outside can translate to more than 110 degrees inside.

Find more tips to prevent hot car deaths here, as well as a roundup of other pertinent articles posted on Patch this summer.