A 16-month-old toddler is dead after being left in a hot car in Burnaby for hours, according to police.

Local firefighters responded to the call on Inman Avenue near Kingsway at about 5:45 p.m. on Thursday, acting assistant fire Chief Dave Younger told the NOW.

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Crews arrived to find paramedics taking the unconscious toddler out of the back seat, he said.

“The infant was unresponsive,” he said.

The father of the child was “totally distraught” and talking to police when firefighters arrived, according to Younger.

Two firefighters accompanied paramedics to Burnaby Hospital to help with CPR on the child.

Burnaby RCMP Chief Supt. Deanne Burleigh called the death “absolutely heartbreaking,” and urged parents not to leave children unattended in vehicles, especially with rising temperatures.

“When you’re transporting your children in a vehicle, please check the vehicle and ensure that you have delivered your child and that they’re no longer in the vehicle when you’re parked and you’ve gone off to do your business for the day,” she said at a press conference Friday afternoon.

Burleigh said the investigation is in the early stages and officers are in the process of interviewing witnesses, family members, neighbours and anyone else in the area.

She would not say who found the toddler, who called 911 or exactly how long the child was in the car.

Both parents are cooperating with the investigation, according to Burnaby RCMP.

No arrests have been made in the case.