Pennsylvania authorities are preparing to charge a mother of three whose kids were rescued from a burning vehicle while she was out shopping on Black Friday, police said Sunday.
Last Friday, 32-year-old Stacey Nelson left her children, ages 2, 3 and 10, inside a car in the parking lot outside a Walmart in Foster Brook while she went inside, The Bradford Era reported.
The 10-year-old girl, who was sitting in the front seat, was playing with a lighter she found in the SUV's glove compartment when a few papers nearby caught on fire. The child "tried to get it out, but it was too late" and the interior was set ablaze, police said according to the newspaper.
Witnesses were able to save the girl and her siblings who were sitting in car seats in the back, Foster Township Police Chief Tom Munn told The Bradford Era. Derrick City volunteer firefighters arrived on the scene and extinguished the fire, but not before it caused significant damage to the interior. The vehicle was towed.
Nelson was found inside the Walmart. She told police she left her children unattended for "about five minutes," the newspaper reported. Police told the mother that small children are not allowed to be left alone with a child of 10 years.
Munn said charges will most likely be brought against Nelson on Tuesday.
Police said they warned the girl against playing with lighters in the future.
