LETHBRIDGE, Alta. -- A charge of failing to provide the necessities of life has been laid against two women in southern Alberta after their children were allegedly left unattended in a locked vehicle in -18 C weather for more than an hour.
Police in Lethbridge say a three-year-old girl and a four-year-old boy were taken to hospital after officers responded to a call around 11:30 p.m. Thursday about a child crying inside a shut-off vehicle on a street.
Investigators say the child was found shivering and in obvious distress before responders broke a window to gain entry, while the second youngster was discovered under a pile of clothes during a search of the vehicle.
Neither youngster suffered any lasting injuries and both have been placed in the care of a relative.
Police say the children's mothers, age 24 and 31, were located inside a nearby bar, and that video surveillance determined they had been there for more than an hour.
The women, whose names can't be revealed to protect the children's identities, remain in custody pending a court hearing.
