We are faced with a heartbreaking and terrifying story about the tragic loss of a little boy. This two-year-old, whose life ended in unimaginable circumstances, left the community in shock and sorrow.

The young child’s father now faces charges in connection with this distressing incident. It’s alleged that he left his toddler alone in a room with a space heater, for close to 15 long hours.

On the morning of December 2nd, deputies responded to a 911 call. They arrived to find little River Carter lifeless in his home.

This tragedy took place in a small town nestled between Fayetteville and Charlotte. The room where the boy was found is reported to have reached temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit, according to officials at the scene.

The investigation revealed that the child had been left in these dire conditions for over 12 hours, exposed to extreme heat from the space heater. This tragic sequence of events unfolded just before his untimely death was reported.

Authorities identified the official cause of death as hypernatremic dehydration, a result of severe environmental heat exposure — a grim outcome of the excessive heat.

Further documentation revealed the father’s actions, noting how he put his child to bed at 3 PM, believing the boy had a cold, a cough, and a mild fever.

Carter reportedly checked on his son two hours later, deciding then to conserve energy by turning off the central air conditioning and relying on space heaters instead. This decision, sadly, ended with the devastating loss of his child.