- Kids and Car Safety is listing the death of a Homestead child as the sixth hot car death in Florida and the 26th in the United States for 2026.
- Age and circumstances of the most recent Florida death are unknown at this time.
- As of Nov. 9, 26 children have died in hot cars this year.
Homestead police responded to a report of a child found dead inside a vehicle Nov. 7.
Kids and Car Safety Nov. 9 is listing the child as the sixth hot car death in Florida and the 26th in the United States for 2026.
Florida leads the U.S. with six deaths of children ranging in age from 17 months to 3 years old.
The age of the child in Homestead and circumstances of her death were unavailable Nov. 9. The USA TODAY Network-Florida has reached out to the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office for more information. ➤ Data reveal when, where children are dying in hot cars
High temperatures Saturday in Saturday were in the mid 80s, but outside temperatures do not have to extraordinarily hot for temperatures inside a car to become deadly.
Safety advocates have said several different factors create the perfect conditions for tragedy to strike a family, and stress simple, consistent habits are the best ways to prevent children from dying in a hot vehicle.
The last time a child died in a vehicle in Florida was in July outside a Fort Myers church and school.
Almost 1,200 children have died in the United States since 1990, and at least another 7,500 survived with varying degrees of injury, according to Kids and Car Safety.
On average, 37 children under the age of 15 die each year from heatstroke after being left in a vehicle, according to the National Safety Council.
"In an overwhelming majority of child hot car deaths, it was a loving, responsible parent that unknowingly left the child. Approximately 45% of children who were unknowingly left were supposed to be dropped off at childcare. It can happen to anyone," according to Kids and Car Safety.
26 children have died in US after being found in vehicles, including 6 in Florida
As of Nov. 9, 26 children have died this year, with Florida leading the country with the highest number of deaths, according to Kids and Car Safety.
Six of the children were in Florida, with the most recent death reported Nov. 7 in Homestead in South Florida.
A girl was found in a vehicle outside a Homestead home Saturday. The child was declared dead at the scene, according to CBS News.
"Further details, including the girl's age and how long she may have been inside the car, were not available, but the Miami Dade Sheriff's Office said its homicide bureau has assumed the investigation."
- A girl died Nov. 7, 2026, in Homestead. The girl was found inside a car outside a home.
- A 17-month-old girl died July 21, 2026, in Fort Myers. The toddler was found dead in a hot car outside of a Southwest Florida church and school.
- A 2-year-old child died July 5, 2026, in Hallandale Beach. The child was left inside a vehicle while in the care of a babysitter, according to Hallandale Police.
- An 18-month-old boy died June 29, 2026, in Plantation. According to cbsnews.com, the boy was found dead inside a vehicle at an early childhood education center.
- A 3-year-old boy in Riverview died June 20, 2026. The boy was discovered by his father in a parked vehicle at the home, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.
- A 1-year-old girl in Winter Haven died March 31, 2026. The baby was discovered in the vehicle at a home.
Safety tips to help prevent babies, toddlers from dying in hot cars
Safety groups say the most effective way to prevent hot‑car deaths is to build simple, automatic habits into everyday routines.
Kids and Car Safety provided these suggestions to prevent children from being forgotten in hot cars:
- Place the child’s diaper bag or item in the front passenger seat as a visual cue the child is with you.
- Make it a habit of opening the back door every time you park to ensure no one is left behind. To enforce this habit, place an item that you can’t start your day without in the back seat (employee badge, laptop, phone, handbag, etc.)
- Ask your childcare provider to call you right away if your child hasn’t arrived as scheduled.
- Clearly announce and confirm who is getting each child out of the vehicle. Miscommunication can lead to thinking someone else removed the child.
Make sure children cannot get into a parked car
- Keep vehicles locked at all times, especially in the garage or driveway. Ask neighbors and visitors to do the same.
- Never leave car keys within reach of children.
- Use childproofing knob covers and door alarms to prevent children from exiting your home unnoticed.
- Teach children to honk the horn or turn on hazard lights if they become stuck inside a car.
- If a child is missing, immediately check the inside, floorboards and trunk of all vehicles in the area carefully, even if they’re locked.
How can a parent forget a child in a car? 'It can happen to anyone'
"The majority of parents and caregivers are misinformed and would like to believe that they could never 'forget' their child in a vehicle," Kids and Car Safety said.
"The most dangerous mistake a parent or caregiver can make is to think leaving a child alone in a vehicle could never happen to them or their family.
"In over half of hot car deaths, the person responsible for the child’s death unknowingly left them in the vehicle. In most situations this happens to the most loving, caring and protective parents. It has happened to a teacher, dentist, social worker, police officer, nurse, clergyman, soldier, and even a rocket scientist. "It can happen to anyone."
"In an overwhelming majority of child hot car deaths, it was a loving, responsible parent that unknowingly left the child. Approximately 45% of children who were unknowingly left were supposed to be dropped off at childcare."
Cars heat up very fast. Cracking the window doesn't help
- 80% of the increase in inside temperature happens in the first 10 minutes.
- Cracking the windows does not help slow the heating process or decrease the maximum temperature.
- Children have died from heatstroke in cars when outside temperatures were as low as 60 degrees.
Research has shown vehicles become dangerously hot quickly, even when the outside temperature is moderate:
- Outside temperature of 72 can climb to 117 inside a car within an hour.
- After 60 minutes, temps can climb 40 degrees when outside temps are between 72 and 96.
How hot is too hot for children inside a vehicle?
Interior vehicle temperatures can be 50 degrees higher than outside temperatures. Even on a cool day when the outside temperature is 61, within an hour, the inside temperature of a car reached more than 105, according to Consumer Reports.
On a 72-degree day, a car's interior can be deadly in less than 30 minutes, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The danger from high temperatures is particularly acute for young children because their bodies heat up three to five times faster than adult bodies, the American Academy of Pediatrics said.
Heatstroke in children can happen when their core temperature reaches about 104 degrees. A child can die if their internal body temperature reaches 107 degrees, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Cheryl McCloud is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida's service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at https://palmbeachpost.com/newsletters.
