A babysitter in Florida was arrested on Wednesday after a 10-month-old child in her care died after being left in a hot car.

Rhonda Jewell, 46, was arrested for manslaughter after a child in her care was found unresponsive in her car.

According to the Baker County Sheriff’s Office, Jewell picked up the child around 8.00am on Wednesday morning from her mother’s home in Macclenny, Florida.

Jewell had been babysitting the child ‘on occasions’ since June 2023, the sheriff’s office said.

After the drop-off, Jewell then drove to another home in the same town where she was babysitting other children. When she got to home, she left the 10-month-old inside her car.

‘It wasn’t until the mother of the infant arrived around 1.00pm to pick up the infant that Rhonda realized the infant was left in the vehicle,’ the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

Florida is currently going through a heat wave as a large ‘heat dome’ expands across the country.

A large portion of the Sunshine State is under an excessive heat warning, with temperature indexes expected to rise to 113-115 degrees Fahrenheit on Friday.

Baker County, located just west of Jacksonville, recorded temperatures as high as 93 degrees Fahrenheit on Wednesday. Authorities estimated the internal temperature of the car the child was left in was as high as 133 degrees Fahrenheit.

When sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene, they found the infant lying on the seat of a golf cart, where first responders were trying to perform life-saving measures.

A police report obtained by First Coast News said that deputies estimated the child was left in the car for about 5 hours on the scorching hot day.

First responders said her skin was ‘very hot to the touch,’ and a thermometer recorded her temperature at 110 degrees Fahrenheit. However, her actual internal temperature may have been higher, as this was the maximum the device could register.

Jewell was arrested and charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child. She was released after paying her $25,000 bond, and was equipped with a GPS ankle monitor.

‘As Sheriff, I would like to take a moment to acknowledge the magnitude of the tragedy felt throughout our county yesterday,’ Baker County Sheriff Scotty Rhoden said. ‘I am asking my community to respect the privacy of the victim’s family and to please join me in prayer for the family and everyone involved.’

The sheriff also asked for privacy and respect for the grieving family.

‘In the blink of an eye, our world can be turned upside down,’ Rhoden said. Please be mindful of this when trying to understand the tragedy that took place in our small town yesterday.’

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