A major probe was sparked after a three-year-old managed to toddle out of her nursery and on to a busy road.
Seline Flores walked unnoticed from Sunnybank School Nursery, Aberdeen, last Friday. She crossed a bustling tree-lined road and walked nearly 100 yards to a corner shop where horrified staff raised the alarm.
Police officers took the youngster back to the nursery after they were alerted.
However shocked relatives of the little girl a cousin of tragic Preston Flores who died following a fireball incident say it’s a miracle she wasn’t harmed.
Seline’s grandmother Mary Flores said she was understandably hesitant about letting the youngster out of her sight.
“This was my granddaughter’s first week at nursery,” she said. “We trusted them with her.”
The distraught 60-year-old is Seline’s legal guardian and carer for the child’s physically disabled mum Natasha, 30.
She added: “My family are my life. If something had happened to my granddaughter it would have killed me. I am barely keeping things together since losing Preston. My heart is already broken.”
The family believe a secured door must somehow have been left open.
“I cannot believe she managed it,” said former shop assistant Mary. “The only thing I can think is that Preston was up there watching over her, keeping her safe.
“When she went into the shop the assistant called the police. Thank God she did. We have not put her back to nursery since and we will probably never send her there again. It’s disgusting.”
The nursery is operated by Aberdeen City Council. Last night they said the “thorough inspection” revealed a faulty door at the back of the school building, which leads to the nursery.
The spokesman said it was found to be swollen due to heavy rain and failing to close properly.
“This was immediately fixed by the janitor,” she said. “Parents are no longer permitted to enter or leave the nursery via this door.”
Police Scotland confirmed they “were made aware of an unsupervised child in the Sunnyside Road area of Aberdeen at around 2.30pm”.
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