New Jersey toddler dies after being left inside hot car for hours

A New Jersey child died on Tuesday afternoon after being left unattended inside a hot car for more than seven hours. 

The two-year-old girl was left in her car seat inside the car sometime on Tuesday morning. It wasn’t until the afternoon when cops knocked on their door that they realized that their child had been left in the car while it was more than 90 degrees outside. 

The incident was reported at around 3 p.m. local time on Tuesday outside of a home near Somerset County, officials reported. 

A local firefighter attempted CPR on the girl, but medics eventually pronounced the toddler dead on the scene. 

The toddler’s mother was so distraught that she had to be taken away in an ambulance, neighbors told NBC New York. 

"They were just screaming in pain and anguish," neighbor Treana Huntley said about the toddler’s parents. 

“It was gut-wrenching, it almost made me want to break into tears as a mother," Huntley added. "Just hearing that pain from another mother... it was very hurtful to hear. I wouldn't wish that on anybody."

The toddler had been left inside the hot car for more than seven hours. It is unclear whether the parents thought the child was inside the house during that time. 

"How can that happen? How do you forget? I guess we’re all forgetful, I’ve forgotten things in the car. But how do you forget the toddler, you know? I don’t know," said neighbor Alex Krstavski.

The Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office said that “further investigation is ongoing to determine the exact length of time the child was in the vehicle, and the circumstances surrounding the events leading to this incident.”