A 20-month-old child has died on the island of Fuerteventura, which forms part of the Canary Islands archipelago. The cause of death was determined to be heatstroke, with the incident occurring over the past weekend. Sources from the regional health ministry confirmed the details to the EFE news agency, officially confirming the tragic nature of the event.
According to available information, the child was first transported by medical helicopter from the general hospital on Fuerteventura. The evacuation was intended to transfer the patient to a specialist facility, and the child was taken to the University Hospital for Mothers and Children in Las Palmas on the island of Gran Canaria. Regrettably, doctors at that hospital were unable to save the child’s life, and the child died in the healthcare facility.
Local media have reported details suggesting the cause of the critical situation. It is reported that the child was left alone in a car after a parent, through oversight, failed to remove the child from the vehicle. Such situations, though rare, can lead to a rapid rise in temperature within the enclosed space of a car, particularly in the climatic conditions prevailing on the Canary Islands.
Although the basic circumstances are known, the public has not been informed of all the details of the incident. It has not been disclosed for how long the child was exposed to high temperatures inside the vehicle before being noticed. This uncertainty leaves room for speculation regarding the intensity of the heat exposure, but official information on the duration of the child’s stay in the car is not available.
The climatic conditions at the scene of the incident were unfavourable. Fuerteventera has been under a yellow alert due to high temperatures since Friday, immediately prior to the incident. This meteorological alert indicates an increased risk of heat, highlighting the danger of leaving children in unventilated vehicles during such weather conditions.
