Baby on Board!
Hot Cars and Small Children
Each year, children die from heat stroke after being left unattended in a motor vehicle. The average number of children that die in hot cars every year in the United States is 37, that’s about 1 every 9 days. Studies have shown that the internal temperature of a car can quickly escalate from 80 degrees to 120 degrees in as little as 60 minutes. Heatstroke occurs when a person’s body temperature exceeds 104 degrees. At 107 degrees, cells are damaged and internal organs begin to shut down. According to a journal report from the American Academy of Pediatrics, small children are more at risk because their small bodies heat up 3-5 times faster than an adult’s body.
The following are a couple safety tips from www.kidsandcars.org. Please share them with your childcare providers, teachers, relatives, friends, family, and neighbors… It could save a life!
“Look Before You Lock" Get in the habit of always opening the back door to check the back seat before leaving your vehicle. Make sure no child has been left behind.
Create a reminder to check the back seat.
Put something you'll need like your cell phone, handbag, employee ID or brief case, etc., in the back seat so that you have to open the back door to retrieve that item every time you park.
Keep a large stuffed animal in the child's car seat. When the child is placed in the car seat, place the stuffed animal in the front passenger seat. It's a visual reminder that the child is in the back seat.
Keep vehicles locked at all times, even in driveways or garages. Ask home visitors, child care providers and neighbors to do the same.
Keep car keys and remote openers out of reach of children.
Never leave children alone in or around cars; not even for a minute.
Use drive-thru services when available (restaurants, banks, pharmacies, dry cleaners, etc.) and pay for gas at the pump.
If you see a child alone in a vehicle, get involved. Call 911 immediately. If the child seems hot or sick, get them out of the vehicle as quickly as possible.