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Belgian family recreates "Home Alone" - son left behind on rest stop bench

by Scott Carmichael (RSS feed) on Jul 14th 2009 at 1:30PM

Next time you run through your checklist of things you don't want to forget when you go on vacation, be sure to include your kid(s) on the list.

That is where a Belgian family went wrong last week, when they left their son on a bench next to their caravan.

The family had stopped at a French highway rest stop and set up their caravan for the night. When the young boy got too hot indoors, he decided to sleep outside on a bench.

When he woke the next morning, his family was gone, and he was on his own without any money or a phone. His family made the mistake of leaving the rest stop, without making sure their son was still with them.

The boy eventually made his way to a gas station where the police were contacted. His family was stopped about 200 miles away and immediately returned to the gas station to pick up their child.

Gallery: 10 things that will mess up your vacation

Filed under: Europe, Belgium, France

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Reader Comments (Page 10 of 10)

willow Jul 17th 2009 3:18AM

i had 6 sons in 8.5 years...so they were 'close'...i remember a road trip where they were throwing a stained pair of skivvies at each other and it was all laffs in the back of the van till it hit my husband in the head...he did the old 'pull-over' too and threatened to leave a few there...i remember one of the boys pointed to his brother and said, "daddy...leave him." road trips with families have a lot of laffs and stories...i am just thankful that all of these stories here had happy endings...i am sure some don't. be safe this summer everybody!

Aidan Jul 17th 2009 12:22AM

Omg I found this story just tooo damn funny...only because it has a happy ending. Few times I was left by myself was at grociery stores because my mom had the habit of forgetting her checkbook you know back in the day before DEBIT cards lol. So she would just tell me to stay by the cart and she run home about 10min away and get it like I am some collateral that the store can keep in case she doesn't come back and there were times I thought for sure she wouldn't lol.

I agree to the few that said hey maybe they are used to their son being quiet you don't know what time they left in the morning and maybe they left so early they were like lets let him sleep. And to all of you who are judging this family when you don't have all the facts. SHAME ON YOU!!

I had always hoped my brother would be left at some rest stop cause you know I was the perfect child lol.

katy Jul 17th 2009 12:30AM

man that's sad i think the parent forgot check to see if he was sleeping in the camper. And yes kids are made to drive everyone crazy. and i don't think it was drugs but at least the cops found him safe and sound and he might be pretty happy to be back with his parents it's scary. and also how old was this kid. i'm thinking the ages of 6 to 8 years old but i could be wrong as well

shepperdsalado Jul 17th 2009 12:36AM

as a mother of two boys, 16 and 13, i find this completely unacceptable! when my children go to sleep at night they both close their doors. to this day i still open their doors before i go to bed to check on them (and leave them open). if i wake in the night or when i wake in the morning, first thing i do is check on them. don't get me wrong, i've made plenty of mistakes as a mom but this is definitely not one of them! it is beyond me that anyone could ever leave their child anywhere at any time regardless the circumstances!

sunnydupree Jul 17th 2009 4:45PM

Jennifer Wilson Jul 15th 2009 7:08PM

That is definitely funny. I, myself, have considered it on our many road trips moving from one base to another. My husband and I each drive a car and since I have the minivan the kids are stuck with me.

Great thread guys.... good to see some funny stuff for a change.....Hey Jen make HIM DRIVE THE MINIVAN!!! Hee heee I was an AFbrat we moved from base to base alot pheww tiring isnt it

carol Jul 17th 2009 1:25AM

That could happen to anyone ask Ron Howard (Opie ) the director. On there way to Yoesemitie here in california they left their 11 year old son at a donut shop here in Fresno. They thought he was with other couple in another car that was caravaning,but he was left using the bathroom in the donut shop.They did not find out untill sometime later when the Fresno police notified his spokeperson or secretary, that he was left there in Fresno. If you see this in any of his movies this really happen to him because this is a true story.

Mary Jul 17th 2009 1:33AM

LOL, my husband left me at a campground once, he finally figured it out because it was so quiet in the RV.

mare Jul 17th 2009 2:09AM

There's been times when I wish I could leave some adults behind on purpose!!

DIANA Jul 17th 2009 2:23AM

WOW....EVEN IF I WAKE UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT I USUALLY CHECK ON MY KIDS.

Buddy Jul 17th 2009 2:27AM

I would not be so quick to point fingers in this case. There is not a lot of info there. We don't know if the law allows for people to travel in the caravan or not. (Not legal in the US) We don't know how many kids they have, etc.
I did a lot of cross country driving with my kids and must admit that there were times the I did threaten to leave them on a bus bench if they did not shape up. All it took was for me to pull over and they snapped to. The one that really got them was the day that I pulled into the parking lot and got out of the car and walked about three cars down and stood. The next two days were peace and quiet I guess while they thought up more deviish behavior. It was tough being a single parent but worth it as they are a success now.

narnianstar Jul 17th 2009 2:40AM

This sort of thing happens everywhere. I work at a major toy store and one night a father left his toddler son behind. He came back after he got home and his wife asked where the child was. Apperently he has 6 children and when ever he or his wife go out they take only 3 with them at a time. That day he had taken 4 and left the little one behind. i'm sure he was in the dog house for weeks after that.