ENID, Okla. - One of the most devastating events in a parents life is the loss of a child. Losing a child is tough enough but knowing that your child is gone due to an act that you did or did not commit is even worse. It seems like we are hearing more often on the national news about parents forgetting their children in the back of a car and leaving them there in the heat of the day.
Since 1998, 882 children have died due to pediatric vehicular heatstroke, an average of 38 children each year. In 2020, 24 children died in hot cars. Although it's not an epidemic, it is often enough that parents with young children need to form habits that guarantee they will not forget the child in the back of a hot vehicle.
When parents get busy or are thrown out of their routine things are bound to happen. Things get forgotten and overlooked which leads to these kinds of accidents. A cars temperature can rise over 20 degrees in just 10 minutes. A car in the sunlight can reach temperatures of 110 degrees when the outside temperature is only 60 degrees. A child dies when their body temperature reaches 107 degrees.
Many organizations are trying to bring awareness to parents and one campaign is called "Look Before You Lock." Here are a few tips and ideas to help new parents form habits of not forgetting the kids in the back of the car.
- If you are a parent that drives kids around you need to get in the habit of checking your back seats before locking the doors and walking away.
- Keep a kids item in your child's car seat when it is empty. As soon as you put the child in the seat move the item up front with you so you'll have a visual reminder or leave something of yours in the back seat.
- If your spouse or someone else is driving your child and it is not their daily routine, be sure to check on the child's location and make sure they arrived safely.
If you ever see a child alone in a closed vehicle make it your first priority to get the child out before doing anything else. The child may not have time for you to wait on the owner of the vehicle. If a child has been left in a hot car and they are unresponsive, call 911 immediately. Make sure the child is out of the car and try to get cool water on the child.
