RUSSELLVILLE, Ala. – Franklin County officials say a 4-year-old boy who had been reported missing was found inside his family”s parked car and died from hyperthermia.
It was the first death reported that was related to the heat gripping the state in recent days. A chance of showers and thunderstorms was forecast for much of Alabama on Tuesday, easing temperatures slightly, but most were still in the 90s.
Sheriff Larry Plott said the boy, William Dylen Mahaffey, was found Sunday afternoon in the backseat floorboard of a car parked at the family”s residence in the Waco community east of Russellville.
Plott says a preliminary autopsy revealed the child died from the extreme heat.
Temperature reached 95 degrees that day, and experts say the temperature inside an enclosed vehicle could have reached 150 degrees.
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