Sobbing mom of NY tot who died after being left in grandma’s Jeep for 8 hours speaks out
A Long Island mother whose 14-month-old daughter died after her grandmother left her in a hot Jeep for eight hours said she feels “defeated” in the aftermath of the tragedy.
Jennifer Watkins sobbed as she clutched an Elmo doll to her chest at a candlelight vigil for her daughter Chyasia Evans, died late Monday afternoon, after being forgotten in the sweltering SUV amid 83-degree heat.
“I know you’re going to be my guardian angel and I love you until we meet again,” Watkins said during the emotional vigil attended by family and friends Tuesday night, NBC New York reported.
“I’m so defeated. I don’t know how to do this,” she said through tears.
Supported by relatives, Watkins gave a gut-wrenching account of the last time she saw her daughter.
“She looked cute, as she did every day,” Watkins said. “I got out of the car, I jumped to the back seat, I gave her a kiss and I told her, ‘I love you, princess.'”
The tot’s 54-year-old grandmother forgot to drop her off at a day care center in Smithtown Monday morning and instead headed to work, leaving her granddaughter in her car seat in the back, according to the Suffolk County Police Department.
The baby’s aunt told NBC New York that when first responders were called to the scene at 4:20 p.m. and took Chyasia out of the Jeep, her body temperature was measured at a scorching 106 degrees.
The aunt also claimed that her niece’s day care never called the family to alert them that Chyasia had not been dropped off that day.
By the time the grandmother got back in her 2018 Jeep Cherokee to pick up her granddaughter and realized her terrible mistake, it was too late.
Chyasia was taken to Saint Catherine of Siena Medical Center, where she died.
The tot’s official cause of death is still pending.
Chyasia had just turned one in May.
Her family celebrated the milestone birthday with a Sesame Street-themed party, as seen in photos featured on a GoFundMe page that was created by her godfather to help Watkins with her baby’s funeral expenses.
The Suffolk County police told The Post Wednesday that so far, no charges have been filed against the grandmother and the investigation is continuing.
Temperatures in Smithtown reached 83 degrees during the day Monday, according to AccuWeather.com.
