2-year-old child tragically died in car while mother took a nap

A 2-year-old girl tragically died in a car parked outside in the heat after her mother took a nap.

Scarlett Grace Harris was found dead in her car near her home in San Diego, California, on August 5 by her mother. The mother had called emergency services in a panic when she couldn’t find her child.

Baby Scarlett before her death. NBC7 screenshot

However, after the first call, the mother called back and reported that she had found her daughter unconscious in the family car.

Paramedics rushed to the scene but Scarlett was already dead.

Scarlett's neighborhood is populated by personnel from military bases near the city, and her father is also serving in the armed forces.

"It's heartbreaking," one neighbor told NBC. "It could have happened to any of us. I'm a mother too, you know, with other important people in our lives, it's heartbreaking and unfortunate."

Scarlett's death comes just weeks after one-year-old twins died in a hot car in New York after their father left them in the car while he rushed to work.

Police have not yet said whether Scarlett was left in the car or trapped inside.

The advocacy group Children and Cars says that on average, a child dies in a hot car every nine days in the US, about 38 times a year.

Last year, the rate was the highest since the advocacy group began tracking deaths, with 53 children dying from heatstroke after being trapped in cars.