ETOWAH COUNTY, Ala. (WIAT) - A father fighting for his country overseas returns home to his nine-year-old child clinging to her life in Children's Hospital.  Hours later, his daughter passed away.

A state pathologist says Savannah Hardin was dehydrated and had a very low sodium level when she died at Children's of Alabama on Monday.

Her stepmother and grandmother face felony murder charges stemming alleged discipline that went too far.  According to the Etowah County Sheriff's Office, Savannah was supposedly told to run and wasn't allowed to stop.

Jessica Hardin and Joyce Garrard are in the Etowah County Jail charged with murder.

According to investigators, the two punished Savannah for lying about eating a candy bar.

Her punishment was to run three hours without stopping.  Later that evening Jessica Hardin called 911 and said that Savannah was having a seizure and was unresponsive.

Savannah was transported to Children's where she died.

Sheriff's deputies launched an investigation after receiving calls from neighbors who saw what happened.

Sheriff Todd Entrekin recounts his conversation with Savannah's father, after he initially heard the news:
"We have a father who was overseas, working for the government, and got the call that his daughter was in the hospital, non-responsive. He told me last night it took him eight flights to get back to the US and to Gadsden to go to Birmingham hospital and find his daughter laying there on a ventilator, and he had to make a decision within four hours to unplug his daughter."

Savannah was a third grader at Carlisle Elementary School. Superintendent Alan Cosby says her classmates have turned her desk into a memorial. Counselors will be hand Thursday for students.