MARION COUNTY, Miss. (WHLT) – A three-year-old girl is in critical condition after she was shot in the head.

Marion County deputies said the incident happened on Ratliff Loop in the Expose community around 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, June 8.

When deputies arrived at the scene, they discovered the three-year-old girl had been shot in the head. She was airlifted to the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) in Jackson for treatment. Authorities said she is currently in the ICU in critical condition.

During their investigation, deputies said the girl and her six-year-old brother were being cared for by their grandmother while their mother was working. They said the victim’s brother came across a loaded firearm while looking for candy in the grandmother’s bedroom.

While playing with the gun, deputies said the boy unintentionally shot his sister.

“Tragic examples like this remind us of the importance to secure firearms in the home and out of reach from children,” said Marion County Sheriff Berkley Hall.