The Helotes Police Department released the name of the baby that died after being left in a hot vehicle for several hours on Friday: 7-month-old Dillon Martinez.
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His father, who works at the store, had forgotten to take the baby to day care that morning before work, police said.
The father, who was hospitalized, was extremely shaken, but cooperative with police, according to NBC affiliate WOAI.
Temperatures in the location were at 38 C for much of the afternoon.
Helotes police say that Martinez was in the vehicle when his father drove to work at the Wal-Mart near Bandera and Loop 1604 on Friday morning.
His death brings the number of children who have died in hot cars in the USA this year to at least 27, including six in Texas, said Janette Fennell, founder and president of KidsAndCars.org, a national child safety nonprofit based in Philadelphia.
A bystander didn’t notice the baby in the auto until about 3:09 p.m. He was then transported to a hospital for chest pains.
No charges have been filed.
The toll began rising sharply in the 1990s with the passing of laws requiring that young children be placed in the back seat to avoid air-bag injuries. The change makes it easier for drivers to forget children since they’re strapped in the back, Fennell said.
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The child safety advocacy group reported that Friday’s incident marks the 27th hot car-related death of a child this year. That’s up from last year’s total of 15. Other strategies include keeping a stuffed animal in the auto seat and placing it in the front seat when the child is strapped in as a reminder that the child is there.
