It’s cruel irony. On the day designated to raising awareness of the dangers of heat strokes (Wednesday, June 8), another baby died in hot car on Heat Stroke Awareness Day. This is the 11th such tragic fatality this year, a 275% increase over the same time last year. This time it was an 8-month old infant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The tragedy behind these tragedies is that such deaths are preventable.
It’s cruel irony. On the day designated to raising awareness of the dangers of heat strokes (Wednesday, June 8), another baby died in hot car on Heat Stroke Awareness Day. This is the 11th such tragic fatality this year, a 275% increase over the same time last year. This time it was an 8-month old infant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The tragedy behind these tragedies is that such deaths are preventable.
We haven’t even reached the official beginning of summer (June 20) yet and we’ve already seen an almost 300% increase in infant deaths due to heat stroke in hot vehicles. Janette Fennel, founder and president of KidsAndCars.org, the leading non-profit child safety group dealing solely with preventing children from being injured or killed in and around motor vehicles said, “The worst thing any parent or caregiver can do is think that this could never happen to them or that they are not capable of unknowingly leaving their child behind.”
She continued, “This can and does happen to the most loving, responsible and attentive parents; no one is immune.”
Since 1990, almost 1,000 children have died in these preventable tragedies. Data shows that 37 children succumb to vehicular heat stroke each year, roughly one every 9 – 10 days.
One such tragedy occurred in October 2008, when the Maya Peabody lost her life. The Peabodys are, by all accounts, the perfect parents. Over the years, they’ve been foster parents, adoptive parents, advocated for the under-privileged and raised several children who were not theirs by biology. Dawn Peabody of Phoenix, Arizona said, “I never thought this could happen to my family. My husband is a loving, responsible and doting father who goes far beyond expectations when it comes to keeping our children safe. If this can happen to him, it can happen to anyone. Technology is needed to make sure that no other child has to suffer the way that our sweet Maya did. Our family will never be the same.”
Other grieving families agree and have taken the power of the pen to send a letter to Secretary Anthony Foxx of the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Dr. Mark Rosekind, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) chief, asking the two to take immediate preventative action.
These families say that simple driver-reminder technology would end the cycle of parents and caregivers inadvertently leaving children in hot vehicles. Further, they say the technology exists, but automakers and government aren’t making it a big enough priority.
Even former NHTSA administrator Joan Claybrook has issued a call to the DOT for a safety standard that includes such technology. She said, “Other lifesaving technologies to save children are now standard equipment on all vehicles. Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH), trunk releases, rear view cameras in 2018, and safer power window switches are great examples where a deadly problem existed and a cost-effective solution was required by the government to make vehicles safer for children; and these advancements have saved countless lives.”
In the absence of such tech, however, there are things that parents and caregivers can do to prevent such unnecessary losses. According to SafeKids.org, we can all ACT to keep our kids alive:
- A: Avoid heatstroke-related injury and death by never leaving your child alone in a car, not even for a minute. Always lock your doors and trunks – even in your driveway. And keep your keys and key fobs out of the reach of kids.
- C: Create reminders. Place something you’ll need at your next stop – like a briefcase or cell phone – next to the child safety seat. It may seem simple, but can be a helpful reminder on a chaotic day.
- T: Take action. If you see a child alone in a car, take action. Call 911. Emergency personnel are trained to respond to these situations.
KidsAndCars has an educational program, “Look Before You Lock.” This campaign has provided over 750,000 safety information cards to birthing hospitals across the country.
One of the issues is that we often think, “I’m only going to be in the [store, etc.] for a minute, Junior will be fine.” This is a deadly misconception. According to SafeKids.org, children’s bodies heat up three to five times faster than adults’ do. This dramatically increases the risk of injury, even death, from heat exposure.
Director of KidsAndCars.org, Amber Andreasen said, “We encourage individuals in all communities to take action if you see a child alone in a vehicle. Try to find the driver of the vehicle, call 911 and if the child seems to be in imminent danger, break the window furthest away from the child to rescue them.
KidsAndCars even offers a tool, the resqme™. It’s a seatbelt cutter and window breaker small enough to go on your keychain. Tap the spring-loaded device on the corner of a car window to shatter the glass.
Note: LegalReader disclaims all responsibility for legal actions taken against those who break the windows of another person’s vehicle, despite the worthiness of the cause.
It should go without saying that our fur babies are equally at risk, if not even more so due to size, for heat stroke if left in hot vehicles. Leaving the window open “a crack” is ineffective, both for children and animals.
You can get more information, statistics and charts pertaining to child vehicular heat stroke from KidsAndCars here.
The loss of a child or pet in such a preventable manner is a nightmare from which most of us, understandably, would never recover. I urge you to find ways of reminding yourselves to “Look Before You Lock.” Sure, it may be “inconvenient” to do so, but I promise it won’t be as bad as losing a loved one. Technology may provide a valuable assist in the process, if such is finally deployed. However, even the best tech fails sometimes (GM ignitions, etc.). No technology beats the human brain, though.
While it’s not possible (or advisable or legal) to leave your babies at home unattended if you’re going out in hot weather, it is possible, advisable and legal to leave your pets at home in the air conditioning. Fido and Fluffy may be cranky that they didn’t get to “go for a ride,” but they’ll at least be alive to give you dirty looks.
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