The father of a toddler who was rescued from a hot, locked car in an affluent Sydney suburb will not be charged.
Police have determined the incident was an ‘honest mistake’ with psychologists adding it could happen to anyone, and that the term for his error is known as ‘forgotten baby syndrome’.
On Friday, the father admitted he thought he had already dropped the child off at school.
The boy’s father will not be charged after police deemed the error ‘an honest mistake’ (pictured returning home after the ordeal)
The boy, believed to be just two or three years old, was found dehydrated and visibly distressed inside a car (pictured) on Thursday
Clinical psychologist Dr Gary Banks told 7 News the simple mistake was not so uncommon.
‘Honest mistakes occur, but so do tragedies.
‘The child’s obviously fallen asleep and they’re on a habit-based procedure and they forgot to drop their child off and actually just forgot.’
The boy, believed to be just two or three years old, was found dehydrated and visibly distressed inside the Kia Carnival parked outside a unit block on the leafy Powell Street in Neutral Bay about 11.15am on Thursday.
Officers broke the window of the car to rescue the toddler who is believed to have been inside the vehicle alone for about three hours, police say.
The father of the boy said he thought he had already dropped the child off at school
The father asked journalists if they could give him a lift to North Shore Hospital, where his son was being treated for dehydration
Police were forced to rescue the toddler from the hot car by smashing a window
The boy’s father returned to the apartment complex early on Thursday afternoon.
‘It was a rough night,’ he told reporters.
‘I went to drop off my kid at the school; he fell asleep in the car. I thought I had dropped him off and I went to work.
‘It’s a disaster, I hope that it doesn’t happen to any other parent. It’s your worst nightmare.’
Temperatures in the area rose to 25c at 11am, but in-car temperatures can be up to 30 degrees hotter than outside on a typical summer day.
Police seized the man’s car and left a note on the door to the family’s home saying the car had been impounded as ‘you left your child in the car’.
The father asked journalists if they could give him a lift to North Shore Hospital, where his son was being treated for dehydration.
He was taken to North Shore Hospital where he was treated for dehydration
The incident prompted police and paramedics to again warn parents of the potentially deadly consequences of leaving children in cars, especially in summer.
In a statement, NSW Police said the boy has been released from hospital.
‘Police have spoken to the parents of the child, and inquiries continue.’
Even on a mild day, the temperature inside a car can reach upwards of 40C, NSW Police said in a statement.
‘I recorded the temperature inside a car for some internal research last summer and it reached 78 degrees in just minutes,’ NSW Ambulance Chief Inspector Brian Parsell previously said.
The vehicle (pictured) was parked outside a unit block on the leafy Powell Street in Neutral Bay, on Sydney’s affluent north shore, about 11.15am, police say
Even on a mild day, the temperature inside a car can reach upwards of 40C, NSW Police said in a statement
‘The situation can quickly cause damage to body cells leading to unconsciousness, shock, organ failure and death. Even in milder temperatures, children and babies can get sick very quickly.’
The RACV also says tests show that on a 30C day, the temperature inside a car can rise to 70C in a matter of minutes.
A maximum of 28C was forecast for Sydney on Thursday.
Officers broke the window of the car to rescue the toddler who is believed to have been inside the vehicle alone for close to 40 minutes