Cheatham County boy, 3, dies after getting trapped in a hot car
A little boy who'd gone missing was found dead inside a hot, abandoned car on the property of a Cheatham County home.
The 3-year-old's death marks the second hot car death in the state this year. Middle Tennessee is under a heath advisory with indexes in the triple digits.
A guardian called 911 about 4 p.m. Aug. 11 to report the boy missing from his home on Navaho Trail outside Pegram. The adult had laid down to take a nap and woke up to find the boy missing, according to the Cheatham County Sheriff's Office.
Before deputies arrived on the scene to assist in a search, a sibling found the boy inside a broken-down van on the property. The Sheriff's Office said they suspect the boy got into the van, shut the door and wasn't strong enough to open it again.
Paramedics tried to revive the boy but were unsuccessful.
The Tennessee Department of Children's Services is involved in the Sheriff's Office investigation.
Eighteen children killed in hot cars this year, two in Tennessee
The boy's death is the 18th hot car death nationally and second in Tennessee this year, according to the Kids and Car Safety, an advocacy group that tracks such deaths.
Since 1990, 1,190 children have died in hot cars across the country, according to the group. So far, these deaths are trending below where they were in 2025 and 2024, which recorded 22 deaths by Aug. 12. both years.
Most children were unknowingly left in the car. At least two other children, in Alabama and Louisiana, gained access to a car like the Cheatham County boy.
In April, 7-month-old Gabrielle Alonzo died after his foster grandmother, who said she intended to drop him off at daycare, instead drove to work at the Monterey Public Library in Putnam County, Tennessee. She was charged with criminally negligent homicide.
The grandmother is scheduled to appear in a Putnam County courtroom for a preliminary hearing Aug. 19, according to online court records.
How to protect children from hot car deaths
Kids and Car safety recommend the following advice to help protect your children:
Use a visual cue, like a diaper bag in the front passenger seat, as a reminder there's a child in your car.
Put an essential item, like your phone, laptop and work badge, on the back seat so you open the back door when you park.
Ask your childcare provider to notify you immediately if your child doesn't arrive as expected.
Keep vehicles locked at all times, especially in the garage or driveway. Ask neighbors and visitors to do the same.
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 stuck in a car.
If a child is missing, immediately check the inside, floorboards and trunk of all vehicles in the area even if they're locked.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Cheatham County boy, 3, dies after getting trapped in a hot car