Q: Why would any parent leave a child locked in a car on a hot day?
When a child suffers serious injury – or even dies – from being left too long in a car on a hot day, it’s easy to blame the parents. We shake our heads in sorrow, thankful that our children are in caring, protective families. Families that would never let that happen.
Unfortunately, these heartbreaking tragedies aren’t limited to children in abusive, neglectful households. They strike across all socio-economic lines, says Scottsdale Fire Department’s Training and Development Deputy Chief Garret Olson. “You leave your children in a hot car and it doesn’t matter how much you make, where you live or the color of your skin. The outcome is still going to be tragic.”
Children who die from hyperthermia inside vehicles account for nearly one-quarter of non-traffic, non-crash-related child fatalities, according to Kids and Cars, a non-profit organization that tracks national statistics on child injuries and deaths.
The reason, says Olson, is rarely due to intended abuse or neglect. Incredibly, it’s often just simple forgetfulness. Parents may follow a daily morning routine that includes regularly scheduled stops – first for coffee, on to a sitter’s home or a day care center to drop off their child, then to work.
Just one interruption during that routine – maybe a phone call or an urgent text message – can lead parents into scattered, multi-tasking mode, increasing the odds of completely overlooking the most important of those regularly scheduled tasks: securing the children for the day.
“We lead such busy lives. We’re rushing from place to place. Sometimes we’re not thinking clearly by the time we get to our destination – and we are miles ahead of ourselves,” says Olson.
If the thermometer reads 95 degrees outside, the temperature inside a vehicle can reach 122 degrees in a mere 20 minutes, says Olson. Much of that temperature rise happens in the first five minutes. After 40 minutes, the temperature will reach 150 degrees. Imagine the car windows acting as a giant magnifying glass, and the car itself as a huge insulator, holding in the heat like a thermos full of hot coffee. “A child can’t survive that,” says Olson.
Dangers exist even on cooler sunny days, according to research published in the July 2005 issue of the journal Pediatrics. The study found that temperatures inside a car can rise significantly when the ambient air temperature reads only 70 degrees. That’s sobering news for Valley parents. We must be vigilant about preventing hyperthermia all year long.
When Taylor and Zach were little, I purchased one of those kiddie mirrors that attach to the front windshield so I could instantly see if they were choking or trying to get out of their carseats. What happened over time is that I became accustomed to making constant “backseat checks.” To this day, my eyes automatically sweep that mirror several times a minute … which is a real life-saver now that there are two 3-year-olds sitting back there!
To prevent tragedy:
• Always place something in the back seat that you’ll need to retrieve when you get out of the car, such as a purse, briefcase or cell phone.
• Use visual cues: Place a diaper bag or backpack containing items that travel with your child in the front passenger seat.
• Keep a large stuffed animal in the car seat when your child is not riding in the car and then, when the child is in the car, move the stuffed animal to the front seat as a reminder that the child is riding with you.
• Use audio cues: Play children’s music when driving your child.
• Stay in parent mode by pledging not to take calls or retrieve voicemail messages when your child is a passenger.
• Ask your childcare provider to call you immediately if your child does not show up at a scheduled time.
New technological devices can signal when a child has been left behind in a vehicle. Dallas inventor Addison Larken is collaborating with ICO Industries of Ohio on the “Child ’Minder®,” a sensor device that attaches to the shoulder harness of a car safety seat. An alarm is activated when a key fob reaches a distance of 10 feet from the sensor.
“It sounds like a smoke detector,” says Larken, “and it starts low and increases.” Larken anticipates that the device will be available by late spring at babyalert.info.
Another safety feature currently being developed by the Volvo division of the Ford Motor Company features sensors that would trigger an alarm if the sound of a heartbeat were detected after the keys from the vehicle were removed.
Some experts, however, worry that alarms might create a false sense of security for parents. The best prevention may be to slow down, simplify and stay focused.
Olson suggests establishing a family policy to never, ever, leave a child of any age alone in a vehicle, not even for one moment. Besides the dangers of hyperthermia, car jackings and abductions can happen within seconds. Kids can play with the controls of the car, creating a dangerous situation. They can choke on a foreign item they find in the car.
“It’s not worth it,” Olson says. “If you are going to stop somewhere to drop off a video, get a drink, get the mail … bring the kid in with you.”
