Toddler left in locked rental car at Dayton Beach International Airport in Florida

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida– A toddler was accidentally left in a locked rental car while being returned by her grandfather to a central Florida airport, and she was not discovered by an employee until 45 minutes later, authorities said Tuesday.

The girl, who is less than two years old, was found by a Hertz employee in a car in the return lot at Daytona Beach International Airport Monday night, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office.

“The child was frightened and hot but fortunately in good health when examined by paramedics,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. “MPs came and found the clerk carrying the child, whose face was warm and streaked with dried tears but breathing normally.”

Not long after the girl was spotted, her mother called to say that her father had accidentally left her daughter in the rental car while he was babysitting her and that she was on her way to be reunited with her daughter , the sheriff’s office said.

The grandfather was charged with child neglect.

The grandfather “was repentant and cooperative with the deputies,” the sheriff’s office said.