Let’s face it: all of us are in a hurry. This is especially the case if you’re a parent. It is very easy for the brain to revert to its “habit memory” rather than its “prospective” memory when it’s overtaxed or stressed. Most parents who leave a child in a hot car didn’t do so on purpose; they did so because they simply forgot that a child was in a car.
However, whatever the reason for the child being left in the car, the consequences can be outright disastrous. A child’s core temperature can quickly heat up to more than 105° in minutes, and their body will soon start to shut down after that. Each year, dozens of children die from heat stroke and many more will become injured.
As a company that advocates often for vehicle-related safety, eTags reminds care givers to be vigilant to prevent an accident like this from happening. Whether a parent, grandparent, aunt/uncle, child care employee, or other, its important to be a part of the solution to the too often occurring tragedy of children dying from heat stroke after being left in an unattended vehicle. First and foremost, get in the habit of checking your car before you exit it every time and even consider leaving something like your phone or your purse in the backseat to assure you are forced to look back to grab it. Another thing you should do is lock your doors when you’re not in the car. This will prevent a child from entering your parked car and becoming trapped where they may be susceptible to heat stroke. Additionally, if you are a child care provider, consider establishing a policy to call parents or guardians of a child that is absent. If you are a child care service that picks up and drops off children, assure the drivers are checking all rows of the vehicle every time before they leave the vehicle parked anywhere.
Many people are not aware that this is a problem and simply by talking to others or sharing information, you can do your part in bringing awareness to this. Small changes to daily habits can make a big difference in helping to avoid these types of tragendies.