Florida deputy shatters window to rescue toddler from sweltering car, dramatic video shows
A Florida Sheriff’s deputy shattered a car window to save a toddler from the intense heat of a closed, locked car parked outside a Walmart in Flagler County.
Video posted to social media by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office shows the unidentified deputy roll up to a maroon car with tinted windows in the mega-store’s parking lot on Monday.
A woman who said she owned the car told the officer the vehicle wasn’t running, and the keys were locked inside, the video showed.
She also said the 1-year-old had been in the hot car for about 10 minutes. The high temperature in the area reached 80 degrees Monday.
“I’m going to smash the window here in a second if [the fire department] isn’t close,” the officer said. “I’m going to smash the window.”
“No, no, no!” the woman replied, according to the video.
“I have to, because she’s stuck in there!” the officer said. “She’s been in there for 10 minutes.”
The woman’s relationship with the toddler was unclear.
The deputy shattered the glass with a window-breaker tool, then deployed his collapsible baton to clear the glass remnants that clung to the frame like jagged teeth.
Then he busted out the remainder of the window, opened the lock and freed the child.
The Sheriff’s Office said the toddler was in good health, despite the heat exposure they suffered, according to WPTV.
The temperature inside a closed car can rapidly rise — especially in the Florida heat, the station said.
For instance, a car parked in 90 degree weather can see the temperature inside jump to 109 degrees in just 10 minutes, WPTV said.
In an hour, it can reach 133 degrees.
The South leads the way in hot-car deaths, the station said.
Texas topped the list with 142 deaths between 1998 and 2023, while Florida was a close second at 110.
Other hot, arid states like California and Arizona came in third and fourth, with 56 and 43, respectively.
