DERRY, N.H. — A New Hampshire woman has been accused of leaving her two young children locked inside a hot car for 22 minutes while she went shopping.

Thirty-three-year-old Marie Dennis of Derry faces charges of endangering the welfare of a child, resisting arrest and second-degree assault.

Authorities said Dennis parked her car in an unshaded area of the Wal-Mart parking lot on Tuesday, left the windows cracked open less than an inch, and went into the store.

Concerned shoppers called 911. Officials said the children, ages 2 and 3, were crying, sweating and their faces were red when crews arrived.

Temperatures on Tuesday reached the 80s and low 90s. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says with an outside temperature of 80 degrees, the interior temperature of a car can reach 109 degrees within 20 minutes. With the outside temperature at 90 degrees, a car’s interior can hit 119 degrees within 20 minutes.

The state health department says heat exhaustion can hit at any temperature over 90 degrees.

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In Hooksett, a woman has been charged with leaving her dog in a hot car.

Police were called by people who said they spotted the dog in the parking log of a BJ’s Wholesale Club. An officer was able to get the dog out of the car.

The owner, Jenny Cheung, was charged with cruelty to animals.

 


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