Five Toddlers Escape Unsupervised from Petah Tikva Daycare, Reach Road

Five toddlers, aged two to two and a half, escaped from a daycare center in Petah Tikva after a rear gate was left open. Three of the children rode toy vehicles to the street, while two others reached a nearby playground. The incident began when a mother complained to the caregivers about the cleanliness of the facility. According to one parent's account to Maariv, the caregivers started cleaning, leaving only one staff member to supervise 26 toddlers. During this time, five children managed to exit through the open rear gate of the daycare's yard. Three of them rode their toy vehicles to Grinspan Street, near the road, while the other two went to a playground where they began playing without adult supervision. A neighbor noticed the three toddlers approaching the road and alerted the police. Simultaneously, a caregiver realized the toy vehicles were missing from the yard, discovered the open gate, and found the children. The three who reached the road were with the neighbor who had called the police. The two at the playground were found shortly after. Authorities, including police and city officials from the early childhood care unit and the Ministry of Education, arrived to investigate the circumstances. The Petah Tikva municipality is treating the incident with great severity, and a joint investigation with the Ministry of Education has been launched to determine how the children exited unsupervised and why the gate was left open. The findings will be forwarded to the daycare's management. A conference call was also held with the parents to explain the event and address their concerns.