Toddler dies of heatstroke after being 'left in car' on scorching Gran Canaria

Toddler dies of heatstroke after being 'left in car' in scorching Canary Islands The 20-month-old boy died at the Materno Infantil University Hospital in Gran Canaria's capital, Las Palmas A toddler has died of heatstroke after he was reportedly left in a car in scorching temperatures on a Spanish holiday island. The child, who was 20 months old, was in a serious condition when he was taken ill on Fuerteventura and then rushed to the island's general hospital on Saturday. He was then taken to a public hospital on Gran Canaria by air ambulance. The boy died in the early hours of Sunday at the Materno Infantil University Hospital in Gran Canaria's capital, Las Palmas. While local reports state the boy was left inside the vehicle, no other details have yet been released. It is unclear where the boy was from. Temperatures in the Canary Islands reached 45C at the weekend, with the current heatwave affecting the popular holiday destination for several few days. Gran Canaria was on red alert today and parts of the neighbouring island of Tenerife on orange alert because of the high temperatures. An 18-month-old called Sofia died last month after she was left inside a licensed nursery transport vehicle close to a famous tourist viewpoint near Lisbon for seven hours. The girl is said to have been "forgotten" inside the vehicle in Almada on the southern bank of the Tagus River directly opposite the Portuguese capital. It was parked by the access to the giant religious Cristo Rei shrine featuring a tall statue of Jesus Christ with open arms facing the Portuguese capital. Hundreds of tourists are said to have passed by the spot where the youngster was slowly dying in temperatures which reached 30C without seeing her behind the darkened and closed windows of the seven-seater SUV. The child's mum went to collect her in the afternoon on July 23 but was told the girl never arrived at the nursery. Emergency services were then alerted just before 4pm but the girl was found in "critical condition" inside a Peugeot 5008 outside the main nursery campus. Despite resuscitation attempts, the girl was pronounced dead at the scene. The creche which was supposed to take care of the toddler has been named as Colegio Mestre Cuco. A police investigation was launched. In June, two children aged two and four were found dead in their family’s car in the town of Carpentras in southeastern France during a heatwave.