Baby Dies In Car While Father Goes About His Daily Routine

We all have routines. We get up at the same time, eat the same thing for breakfast, take the same routine to work. Sometimes, when the unexpected happens, we get thrown off. Really thrown off. That’s what happened to Lazaro Ramos on Tuesday with devastating consequences. On Tuesday, Ramos was supposed to drop his baby girl off at daycare, which he reportedly told police was not part of his normal routine. He forgot, and the 6-month-old died in the back of his car.

Miami-Dade Police confirmed that the baby girl was found at Doral Academy Preparatory School where Ramos had gone to pick up another of his children from school, reports NBC News. She was dead in the car, having been left strapped in her car seat for approximately nine hours. It is unclear where the car was parked during the day during which temperatures reached 88 degrees.

That means that Ramos dropped his other child off at school, went to work, and, at the end of the day, returned to the car without noticing his baby girl dead in the backseat. Supposedly, it was only after picking his other child up did Ramos notice the baby, and police reported to the scene. The baby, Rosalyn, was transferred to Miami Children’s Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

According to the Houston Chronicle, about half of children left in cars were forgotten by their caregivers. From 1998 to the present, “534 little ones have died when left in a hot car, for an average of 38 such deaths per year.”

Wow, 534 little ones. I know that we get stuck in our routines. I know that we, as parents, are tired and overwhelmed. But please, please, when you lock your car and head into the store or work or the mall, make sure your babies aren’t trapped in their car seats.

Ramos is currently being held by police while investigations continue.