Police will investigate how long two little girls were sweltering inside a hot car in Queensland before they were pulled out on Saturday.
A 27-year-old woman, reported to be their mother, has been charged with double murder for the distressing deaths of the toddlers, aged one and two, who police said showed signs of exposure to “extreme heat”.
A crime scene was established around a black station wagon parked in the front of the suburban Logan property, south of Brisbane.
One neighbour has claimed the children were spotted inside the vehicle up to seven hours before emergency services arrived at about 1.35pm when temperatures at reached 31 degrees outside.
Paramedics tried unsuccessfully to revive the infants after being called to the home in Waterford West.
“They were both declared deceased at the scene,” Detective Inspector Mark White said.
“The two children exhibited signs of being exposed to extreme heat and that is forming the direction of our investigation.
“We are speaking the parents of those children. It’s a very tragic incident which has occurred.”
Neighbours described confronting scenes as the children’s lifeless bodies were carried out by police.
Temperatures inside sealed vehicles can be as much as 40 degrees hotter than outside, with most of the temperature increase happening in the first five minutes.
In those conditions, children can very quickly become distressed, dehydrated and can die from organ failure.
Police are attempting to establish how long the girls had been in the station wagon which has since been taped off and turned into a crime scene.
The Courier Mail reports that one woman claims her grandson saw the girls in the car as early as 6.30am – seven hours before emergency services raced to the property.
The family reportedly moved in as recently as six months ago.
One witness told Nine the parents rushed the children’s bodies into the house, trying desperately to cool them with water.
The children’s parents were interviewed for several hours before the woman was charged with two counts of murder on Saturday night.
She was taken into custody and is expected to appear in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday.
Support is being offered to officers who attended the scene which was described as “tragic”.
“We are putting a lot of emphasis on supporting our people,” Detective Inspector White said.
“One of our priorities in addition to conducting the investigation is the wellbeing of our staff and our other emergency service colleagues.”
The Logan property was also searched in 2016, before the family moved in, in relation to the murder of Beenleigh schoolgirl Tiahleigh Palmer.
-with AAP
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