COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A South Carolina coroner’s office says a 4-year-old child from Maryland has died after he was found locked in a hot car.
News outlets report Richland County Coroner Gary Watts said at a news conference Friday that Zion Akinrefon was pronounced dead Wednesday at a Midlands hospital from complications of probable hyperthermia.
Deputies found Zion unresponsive at a home in Blythewood. He was rushed to a hospital after paramedics couldn’t revive him.
The child was in South Carolina visiting relatives. He was last seen watching television when he apparently went missing. His mother later found him in the back of the family’s car.
Sheriff Leon Lott says no charges are being filed so far.
Authorities say the child’s death marks the first hot car death in the county since 2015.
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