3-year-old, left in truck, runs over another toddler. Tragedy highlights a known risk, group says

A 3-year-old child struck and killed another toddler after getting behind the wheel of a truck over the weekend, according to police.

The truck owner left the vehicle running with the 3-year-old in a car seat in the back while he went into a 76 gas station Saturday afternoon, according to police in Woodland, Calif., a city about 15 miles northwest of Sacramento.

The child “got out of their car seat and got into the driver’s seat,” police said. “The truck began moving forward and it collided with a two-year-old child who was near a taco stand on the edge of the lot.”

The family of 2-year-old Ailahni Sanchez Martinez told KCRA-TV Channel 3 the girl was a month away from her birthday when she was hit.

“She was always happy, she loved to dance and brought joy to the family,” her mother told the outlet.

The family had been setting up their taco stand when the car crashed into the child.

“Unfortunately my niece was hit by a vehicle at our in laws taco stand while eating her tacos on a table,” said a GoFundMe page set up by a woman who identified herself as a family member.

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The Woodland Police Department said in a Facebook post on Monday that the investigation remained open and that everyone had cooperated, including the man who walked away from the truck, whom they have not identified. No arrests have been made.

Every year, hundreds of children are injured and some killed when vehicles are unintentionally set into motion, according to Kids and Car Safety, a nonprofit that works to eliminate vehicle-related risks to children and pets.

The group reminds drivers always to set their parking brake when parking their vehicle. Drivers are also urged to check to make sure that their cars cannot be shifted into gear without a foot on the brake.