Surrey RCMP is investigating and the Ministry of Children and Family Development has been contacted after two young children were left in an unattended car while their mother was shopping.
The incident happened at King’s Cross Shopping Centre in Newton just before 7 p.m. on Thursday night.
A woman walking in the parking lot noticed the children – a toddler and an infant - in the black SUV with the doors locked and the engine running.
The woman pulled out her phone and filmed police opening the doors to attend to the children inside the car. Their mother can be seen steps away, inside the store paying for her groceries.
The mother told police the car was running, the air conditioning was on, and the doors were locked.
Officers say she was cooperative, and so far no charges have been laid. The children are still with their mother.
Parenting expert Kathy Lynn said leaving the air conditioning on was not enough of a safety measure.
“This was a really dangerous situation… Toddlers can be smarter than we think,” she said.
“If you were going to run up to the front door of somebody’s house, grab something and be gone a minute and a half, maybe that’s okay. But generally speaking, do not leave your kids in the car - it’s just dangerous.”
This is the second time in less than a week emergency crews have responded to kids left alone in cars in Metro Vancouver. Rescue crews were called to help at a Port Coquitlam parking lot after concerned shoppers spotted children alone in a vehicle.
With files from CTV Vancouver’s Jonathan Glasgow
