Hot summer days have contributed to at least nine child deaths so far this year in the United States due to heatstroke, which can happen when kids are unattended in cars. This often occurs when children are forgotten in a vehicle, left there intentionally for what parents think will be a “brief errand,” or when kids gain access to an unlocked vehicle in their yard or a neighbor’s. The four Safe Kids Coalitions in North Dakota remind caregivers to never leave children alone in a vehicle, and if you see a child alone in a car, call 911.
Heatstroke, also known as hyperthermia, is the leading cause of non-crash, vehicle-related deaths for children. It occurs when the body can’t cool itself quickly enough, and the body temperature rises to dangerous levels. Young children are particularly at risk as their bodies heat up three to five times faster than adults. Since 1998, over 940 children across the United States have died from heatstroke alone in a vehicle.
A car can heat 19 degrees in just 10 minutes and eventually get 40-50 degrees hotter inside than outside. Therefore, on a mild 70-degree day, temperatures inside a car can get as hot as 110-120 degrees, and cracking a window doesn’t help. Heatstroke can happen anytime, anywhere, and has happened in all 50 states, with record years seeing up to 53 children die of this cause.
The four Safe Kids Coalitions in North Dakota offer these tips to help protect kids from this preventable tragedy.
They suggest that we can cut down the number of deaths and near misses by remembering to ACT.
Avoid heatstroke-related injury and death by never leaving a child alone in a car, not even for a minute. And keep your vehicle locked up when you’re not inside so kids don’t get in on their own. Even if you don’t have kids in your family, keeping your car locked can prevent other kids in the neighborhood from gaining access to a vehicle that could pose a threat.
C- Create reminders. Keep a stuffed animal or other memento in your child’s car seat when it’s empty, and move it to the front seat as a visual reminder when your child is in the back seat. Or place and secure your phone, briefcase, or purse in the back seat when traveling with your child. Set the alarm on your phone or call another family member to report that the child(ren) has been dropped off.
T- Take action. If you see a child alone in a car, call 911. Emergency personnel want you to call. They are trained to respond to these situations. One call could save a life.
For more information on preventing child heatstroke deaths, please visit www.safekids.org/heatstroke or contact one of the North Dakota Coalition Coordinators: Safe Kids Bismarck-Mandan (Alyssa at 701.323.6504), Safe Kids Fargo-Moorhead (Katie at 701.234.7233), Safe Kids Grand Forks (Carma at 701.739.1591), or Safe Kids Minot (Amber at 701.418.8527)
