Dog left in hot car on Hilton Head dies, owner charged

A 55-year-old Hilton Head Island woman was charged with animal cruelty Tuesday after she left her dog locked inside her hot car earlier in the day, according to a news release from the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office.

Sheriff's deputies had to use entry tools to open the locked car to get the dog out of the vehicle, which was parked at the Circle Center on Pope Avenue around 11:20 a.m. Tuesday.

Another person on scene when the deputy entered the car to remove the slumped-over dog brought it to a local veterinary office, where it died despite efforts to resuscitate it, the release said.

According to the National Weather Service, the recorded temperature in Beaufort County nearest to 11:20 a.m. today was 87 degrees, with a heat index at 91 degrees.

The owner of the dog and the vehicle was not at the scene, but was later located. She had left her dog in the car around 7 a.m., the release said.

The woman was charged with cruelty to animals and is scheduled to appear in Hilton Head Municipal Court next month, the release said.

This story was originally published May 13, 2015 at 9:55 AM with the headline "Dog left in hot car on Hilton Head dies, owner charged."