11-month-old dies after being left in hot car for 16 hours, authorities say

CALVERTON PARK, Mo. — An 11-month-old girl died in Missouri over the weekend after authorities said she was left in a hot car for as many as 16 hours, according to multiple reports.

Authorities with the Florissant Valley Fire Protection District were called Sunday after to respond to an infant who wasn't breathing in the 100 block of Anistasia Drive, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. When they responded to the incident around 5 p.m., they found an unresponsive 11-month-old girl inside a hot car, according to the newspaper.

Mark Flauter, chief medical officer of the Florissant Valley Fire Protection District, told KSDK the baby was left in the car after her parents arrived home sometime between midnight and 1 a.m. Sunday. She wasn't found in the car for another 16 hours, Flauter told the news station.

Family members identified the girl to KMOV as Joseline Eichelberger.

"I feel like a piece of my heart is going because she was part of me," the girl's cousin, Lilly Bellfield, told KMOV.

It was not immediately clear whether charges would be filed in connection with the case. Officials told the Post-Dispatch police have questioned two people and that they're working with the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.

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