The mayor of Bancroft said the community feels saddened by the tragic death of a 23-month-old child, who died after being accidentally left inside a hot car while his mother was studying at a local high school.

The Bancroft detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) confirmed last week that officers were called to a parking lot on Monck Road at about 3:45 p.m. on June 23, where an infant was found showing no signs of life.

Meanwhile, the mayor of Bancroft, Paul Jenkins, said the child Everett Smith died despite several attempts to resuscitate him.

The mayor said the boy's mother was a teacher at North Hastings High School and was supposed to leave Everett at daycare in the morning but accidentally left him in the car.

Jenkins said: "This is a very tragic incident that cannot be understood."

"The mother who takes the child to daycare every day and continues teaching at the high school, discovered at the end of that day that the child had been found inside the car."

Jenkins said school staff tried to save the child when he was discovered inside the car. The temperature in Bancroft was up to 27 degrees Celsius on Thursday afternoon.

He added: "No one can imagine putting themselves in this situation, and the community is doing its best to support the family in any way."

A spokesperson for North Hastings High School said they are aware of this tragic incident that happened last week in the school parking lot.

The public prosecutor's office described Smith's sudden death as a "tragic case," noting that the investigation is still in its early stages and more information will be released later.

The mayor said everyone should develop habits to remind themselves of daily tasks, pointing out how tired families who work hard to meet demands that can be stressful are.

He added, "There are things we can look at later that might help prevent this from happening again, but looking back, nothing could have changed the outcome."

Edited by: Deema Abu Khair