Fifty-two kids died last year in the U.S. after being left in hot cars. According to the National Safety Council, 2018 was the deadliest year on record in the last 20 years for children dying from vehicular heatstroke. Ron See with the Washington Police Department urges parents, grandparents, and babysitters to check their backseat every time they get out of the car. He says it’s important to have a routine and sometimes having an item as reminder can be helpful, “If you’re the one that’s driving the car, always make sure that that backseat is empty or the car seat is empty. One way of doing this is placing a stuffed toy or something in the car seat, and then when the child is in the car seat set that stuffed toy up front with you. If you get in the habit of this, you’ll always check for that stuffed toy. Always check that backseat, even if you know that the child is not with you, check and just make sure that way you get in the habit of doing that.”

The temperatures in a vehicle can increase quickly, if it is 85 degrees outside in just 10 minutes the air inside the vehicle climbs to 104 degrees. See also encourages parents to talk to their child’s daycare provider and to set up a plan for the daycare provider to call you if the child has not been dropped off by a certain time, as a safety net.

When you get home for the day, lock your car so that kids playing can’t get into it and get stuck. If you see a child unattended in a vehicle, call the Washington County Safety Center at 653-2107 or call 911.