Report: 4 girls locked in car die from heat near Hebron

Town of Taqumiya falls into deep mourning after tragedy; girls ranged in age from two to six years old.

By YASSER OKBI, THE POST CORRESPONDENT
Palestinian Red Crescent ambulances [file] 390 (R) (photo credit: Baz Ratner / Reuters)
Palestinian Red Crescent ambulances [file] 390 (R)
(photo credit: Baz Ratner / Reuters)
Four girls, two are sisters, died from heat after they were locked in a car Thursday in the West Bank town of Taqumiya which is west of Hebron. A fifth girl who was in the vehicle was evacuated to Al Ahli hospital in Hebron in critical condition.
The head of the Taqumiya municipality Sami Fatafata told the Ma'an news agency that the five girls ranged in age form 2 to 6 years old. He said the girls ventured away from their families who were occupied harvesting olives.
It is believed that after being locked inside the car the girls failed to open the doors and died shortly after as a result of the extreme heat.
The Palestinian Red Crescent EMS pronounced the girls' dead at the scene.
A surviving family member said, "When we saw that the girls disappeared we began to search for them and we ended up finding them in the car."
According to the report, there was an atmosphere of deep mourning was felt throughout Taqumiya on Thursday.