Three people have been charged after children and pets were left in cars in the sweltering South Carolina heat.

The Post and Courier of Charleston reported an 81-year-old grandmother was jailed after two children and a dog were left in a car for an hour in a store parking lot Wednesday when the heat index hit 115.

The keys were in the car and the children, ages 6 and 9, got out by the time police arrived.

A Spartanburg couple was charged with animal cruelty when their dog was left in a car in a parking lot for almost an hour.

Three dogs being walked by a homeless North Charleston man were taken to an animal shelter because they were overheated. One was so weak it had to be euthanized.