A demonstration shows the temperatures inside and outside of a parked vehicle on July 30. The event was part of an effort to show the dangers of leaving a child unattended in a vehicle. I n the midst of the dog days of summer, child-safety advocates are focused on curtailing heat-stroke deaths resulting from children being left in cars that become dangerously overheated.
“Losing one child is one too many, and that’s why we are here today,” Safe Kids New Jersey Director Carol Ann Giardelli said. She added that the problem has reached a critical level across the country.
“Last year, we lost 44 children to heatstroke. And this year, we already lost 18, with one as recent as last weekend.”
Officials from Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, along with vehiclesafety advocates with Safe Kids New Jersey, held a demonstration July 30 to illustrate how quickly the temperature in a closed car rises during warm weather.
Long Branch police officers remove a doll from a hot car during the July 30 demonstration. “If you look at some of the facts, they are very shocking,” Dr. Renuka Verna said, adding that more than 600 children have died nationwide over the last 15 years as a result of heat stroke after being left in an automobile during warm-weather months.
“That’s a very stark number, and the question is why is it happening and why is it happening more now?”
The demonstration featured a recording of an actual 911 call made in Florida when a good Samaritan noticed an unattended child in a locked car and called police.
The 18 deaths attributed to heat stroke so far in 2014 occurred in 10 states — including New York — and involved children ranging from 9 months to 5 years old.
Outside temperatures ranged between 73 and 95 degrees.
According to Verna, the internal temperature in a closed vehicle can reach 125 degrees in the first 10 minutes after the engine is shut off.
“A car that is parked in a sunny spot can have a temperature rise up to 20 degrees in 10 minutes,” she said.
“That is very dangerous, and a lot of times you’ll say, ‘I’ll be in and out; you can stay in the car.’ That’s a dangerous act.” Verna said smaller, dark cars tend to become hotter inside, with the temperature of some cars reaching as high as 178 degrees.
She said one of the reasons for the increase in child deaths is that, in the early 1990s, airbags became more prevalent, forcing parents to place children’s safety seats in the back of the car and making it easier to inadvertently leave a child in the car.
According to Giardelli, 51 percent of heat stroke victims in cars were children inadvertently forgotten; 29 percent were children who got into a vehicle without an adult being aware of their situation; and 18 percent were children left there intentionally.
Of the 18 deaths in 2014, 11 were due to children inadvertently left in a car; six were children who gained access to the car independently; and the reason for one death has not been established.
One of the ways Safe Kids New Jersey is promoting child safety is through raising awareness of the acronym ACT, which stands for “Avoid heat stroke,” “Create reminders” and “Take action.”
“You can avoid heat stroke and injury by never, ever leaving your child in a vehicle, not even for a minute,” Giardelli said.
She also said when parents take children in the car with them, a good reminder is to place an essential item in the backseat with the child like a briefcase or cellphone.
Verna said state law prohibits leaving a minor alone in a car.
She said groups like Safe Kids New Jersey are providing education for parents in an attempt to prevent more deaths.
“If we really want to prevent these deaths of our children, the best thing to do is to create a community that is aware of the situation, that knows the facts,” she said. “Prevention is the key here.”
Lisa Madden, Monmouth Medical Center’s Safe Kids coordinator, said parents often are in denial that they could possibly leave a child unattended in a car.
“It is such an important cause, because I know how easily this could happen,” she said. “When everyone says, “This could never be me,” I tell them how easy it is for them to forget.”
During the demonstration, two Long Branch police officers answered a mock 911 call; unlocked a car using special equipment; and secured two dolls standing in for children left in the backseat, offering tips to onlookers.
Safe Kids New Jersey, led by the Central Jersey Family Health Consortium and founded by Johnson & Johnson, is one of more than 600 grassroots coalitions in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico to educate and protect families.
For more information, visit safekidsnewjersey.com