CORRECTION (August 15, 2023): A broadcast version of this story included video of a Smithtown day care center, Story Book Hollow, that was not involved in the case and has no connection to Chyasia Evans or her family.
A 14-month-old girl has died after being left in a vehicle for about eight hours on Long Island, Suffolk County Police said Tuesday.
According to police, Chyasia Evans' grandmother, a 54-year-old Greenlawn woman, forgot to drop her off at daycare on Monday and went to work, leaving the child in a car seat in the back.
About eight hours later, at around 4:20 p.m., the child was to be picked up from daycare, located on Redwood Lane in Smithtown, when the grandmother realized she had left the child in her vehicle, Suffolk County Police Homicide Squad said.
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The toddler was taken to Saint Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown where she was pronounced dead. The death is under investigation and no criminal charges have been filed.
Stuffed toys and lit candles lined the parking spot in Smithtown late Tuesday where the girl died. Her mother, Jessica Watkins, was clutching an Elmo toy in her arms during a vigil for the toddler.
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"I know you’re going to be my guardian angel and I love you until we meet again," Watkins said. "I’m so defeated. I don’t know how to do this."
The child’s aunt said the daycare never notified anyone that the child was not dropped off, which could provided critical life-saving hours for the girl. No one at the daycare could be reached Tuesday night.
About 40 children die of heatstroke in the United States every year after being left or becoming trapped in a car, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. The majority of cases happen when a parent or caregiver forgets that the child is in the car.
Monday's high temperature in Smithtown was 83 degrees Fahrenheit, but temperatures inside a car can reach much higher.
