Kids and Hot Cars: A Dangerous Combination

We still have plenty of summer and hot temperatures remaining.  Time to call attention to children and hot cars.  Here's a sad statistic.  Already this year in the United States, there have been at least twenty-three reported deaths of children who were left in hot cars. On a 90-degree day, the temperature inside a parked car will reach 119 degrees in twenty minutes, and after an hour, 133 degrees.  This can lead to heat stroke or even death.  According to Janette Fennell, founder and president of KidsAndCars.org, the most recent reported deaths were a four-year-old girl from Pennsylvania who died in the vehicle when her caregiver drove to work instead of taking the child to daycare; the second a two-year-old in Dallas who was left in the hot car while his family was in church.
Fennell goes on to state that the number of such deaths has risen markedly with laws requiring young children being placed in the back seat.  And now infant and toddler car seats are rear-facing.  "The problem is, when you are out of sight, you can be out of mind", Fennell remarks.
No one is calling these people bad parents.  It's just a horrible mistake with a tragic outcome.  It can happen to the most caring parents.  KidsAndCars.org has several recommendations for parents, one being to leave your purse or cell phone in the back seat so you will have to retrieve it when leaving your vehicle.  There is a car seat available that sounds an alert if the driver is leaving the car and the child is still buckled in the car seat. For more information and safety tips, visit www.KidsAndCars.org.