BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- A 2-year-old boy is dead and it appears that his 3-year-old sister accidentally shot him in the chest, according to the Bakersfield Police Department.

The accidental shooting happened around 4:15 p.m. Wednesday, in the 4200 block of Parkwood Court.

Ruben Soto III, 2, had a gunshot wound to his chest when BPD officers arrived, Soto was taken to Kern Medical Center, but later died.

According to the BPD, the children's mother was in another area of the apartment when the 3-year-old girl apparently grabbed a .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun from under her parents bed and accidentally shot her brother.

The neighborhood was in shock.

"It's pretty shocking, you know, parents having a gun when kids can get to it and it's loaded," said Bobby Ortiz.

"I don't know if there's another word to describe it, it's just a tragedy," said Sgt. Greg Terry of the BPD. "It's so important that if you're going to have firearms in your possession, make sure they're stored safely, so that incidents like this don't occur."

According to Terry, if a firearm is in a home where children can reasonably access the weapon and cause great bodily injury or death, it is a crime.

The BPD is still investigating just how the young girl may have gotten the weapon.

The children's father was at work at the time of the shooting.