Toddler locked in running car
Staff writer
A sheriff’s deputy freed a 2-year-old locked in a running vehicle with its air conditioner on Sunday morning at Marion County Park and Lake.
A deputy was dispatched at 10:55 a.m., arrived at 11:05 a.m., and was able to get the child out using a tool at 11:09 a.m.
“He had access to an unlocking tool that we generally don’t carry,” Undersheriff Larry Starkey said. “We don’t unlock cars. In emergencies, we just break a window.”
Because the air conditioning was on, the situation wasn’t an emergency, Starkey said.
“It ended well,” Starkey said. “The child got out, and no windows were broken.”
He reminded drivers not to leave children unattended in a vehicle and never to hesitate to call 911, even if it’s for an animal trapped in a vehicle.
“They can still call 911,” he said. “We’ll come and do what we can.”