Tragedy struck in Madisonville, Kentucky, when a 10-month-old girl lost her life after being left in her grandmother’s scorching hot vehicle for hours. The incident occurred outside the medical clinic where the grandmother worked, according to police statements.
The infant, named Scottie Gwyn Crowell, was discovered still secured in her car seat by her grandmother, Dr. Stacey Fazenbaker, at the Owensboro Health Multicare facility on August 13. Authorities revealed that the baby had been in the vehicle for nearly eight hours, a situation arising after her grandmother was supposed to take her to daycare that morning.
On that fateful day, temperatures soared to 95 degrees Fahrenheit outside, with the interior of the car climbing to a stifling 115 degrees, as reported by WEHT.
The day began with 61-year-old Fazenbaker volunteering to drive her granddaughter to daycare. However, when the baby’s father arrived at the daycare around 4 p.m., staff informed him Scottie had never been dropped off, according to the Daily Mail.
The family was alerted to the heartbreaking oversight when they realized Fazenbaker had driven straight to work, inadvertently leaving the baby girl in the car.
Horrified, Fazenbaker “ran outside with some co-workers to get the child. But it was far too late by then,” Madisonville Police Major Jason McKnight told reporters.
“The grandmother had already got the child, and so the officers tried some lifesaving measures, but unfortunately it was too late for that.”
No charges have been filed as police continue to probe the tragedy.
Fazenbaker was tested for drugs and alcohol, but police don’t anticipate positive results.
“As the picture becomes clearer on how this could have possibly happened, there is a possibility charges are sought before the grand jury convenes,” McKnight said.
An autopsy will determine Scottie’s official cause of death.
Fazenbaker had just moved to Madisonville a year ago to be close to her daughter Sydni Crowell, 33, herself a local OB-GYN, the Daily Mail reported.
“We love you so much, our sweet baby girl,” Sydni’s sister Emmy Fazenbaker, a sports reporter for Middle Tennessee State University, posted in tribute on Facebook.
The Madisonville Police Department did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for additional information.
Scottie, her parents’ second child, was born on Sept. 20, 2025, via in vitro fertilization, according to the outlet.
Crowell began working at Baptist Health Deaconess in Madison in February 2025 after completing her residency at Mercy Hospital in St Louis.