In the US state of Ohio, a 2-year-old toddler accidentally killed his eight-months-pregnant mother after shooting her in the back with a handgun, local police said.

Laura Ilg, 31, called for help on the afternoon of June 16, saying her son had shot her at her home in Norwalk, said Inspector David Smith.

“She explained that she is 33 weeks pregnant and that her 2-year-old son accidentally shot her in the back with a gun,” Smith added, speaking to News 5 Cleveland.

Despite the immediate intervention of rescuers, the young woman died at the hospital, while doctors were unable to save the fetus she was carrying, the police official noted.

Ilge was still conscious when the police arrived at her home and explained that her son entered his parents’ room, the door of which was usually locked, while she was busy doing laundry and started playing with the gun.

Police found a 9mm handgun resting on a nightstand in the room as well as two other loaded guns.

The victim’s husband, who was away from home at the time of the incident, told police that the guns belonged to him.

The tragedy is the latest in a series of tragedies in the US, a country with 400 million firearms and about 330 million residents.

In March, a 3-year-old girl accidentally killed her 4-year-old sister with a gun near Houston, Texas, despite the presence of five adults, including the girls’ parents, in the home.

About 40 percent of American households — many of which have children — own at least one gun, according to the Pew Research Center. However, less than half of households keep these weapons in a safe place, as a Johns Hopkins University survey revealed.

The tragedy in Norwalk occurred despite the family taking security measures, the city’s police chief said, while urging citizens who own firearms to be even more careful, especially using “locks, safes” and “the least let them not leave their weapons loaded.”