Boy dies in Bungoma after being left in locked car

What you need to know:

  • Mateka location Chief Julius Barasa said the woman, identified as Christine Nasimiyu, and her lover left the child in the car and went to the guest house.
  • The inside of a vehicle heats up rapidly when locked, and temperatures can reach as high as 125 degrees in minutes, according to Kidsandcars.com.

An eight-year-old child died on Sunday in Bumula, Bungoma County, when his mother left him in a locked car.

The woman and her lover are said to have gone to a hotel room near Mateka market and left the child in the vehicle without the engine running.

Mateka location Chief Julius Barasa said the woman was identified as Christine Nasimiyu.

“They left him with three bottles of soda but the baby died due to lack of fresh air,” said the chief.

Police rescued the couple from an angry mob seeking to lynch them.

The two were arrested and taken to the Bumula Police Station while the body of the boy was taken to the Bungoma County Referral Hospital mortuary.

Joseph Lupao, a children's welfare officer, condemned the two for abandoning the child in the car.

“This is absurd and very wrong - a child has died due to carelessness. They should be charged in court,” he said.

According to Kidsandcars.com, children locked in cars die of vehicular heatstroke.

The website explains that the inside of a vehicle heats up rapidly when locked, and temperatures can reach as high as 125 degrees in minutes.

The heat causes the child's body temperature to rise to more than 40 degrees, causing hyperthermia and death. The website states that a child’s body overheats three to five times faster than that of an adult.