Detroit police are investigating the deaths of two children found in a minivan on Monday afternoon.
The investigation began after two children, ages 9 and 2, were brought to Children’s Hospital, where they were pronounced dead on arrival.
According to authorities, the children’s mother, who was unsheltered, had been sleeping with her five children—ages 2 to 13—inside a minivan parked on an upper level of the Hollywood Casino parking structure.
The car had run out of gas, leaving it without heat, authorities said. The mother awoke to find the 2-year-old not breathing and called a godmother for help. The godmother rushed the 2-year-old and the mother to the hospital. After dropping them off, she returned to the van and discovered that the 9-year-old was also not breathing. She then rushed him to the hospital, police said.
Both children did not survive.
The investigation is ongoing, and the cause of death has not yet been determined, but believed they may have frozen to death.
Authorities are urging anyone who may be unsheltered to stay at local respite locations and Warming Centers. A list can be found on the City of Detroit website.
