During this first week of June, Kentucky State Police is reminding motorists how deadly it can be to leave a child in a hot car in the summer months.
‘Keeping Kids Cool’ is a statewide initiative to provide awareness about leaving children in hot cars, according to a news release, which says while it may seem like common sense, statistics show that these deaths are continuing to happen across the U.S.
According to the National Safety Council, 52 children died in 2019 of vehicular heatstroke and Kentucky accounted for two of those. One child in Texas has already died this year from being left in a hot car.
Since 1998, there have been 850 child-related vehicular heatstroke deaths in the United States. These include instances where a child has been forgotten in a car, accidentally locks themselves in a vehicle or, in a small number of cases, when a child has been intentionally left in a car.
KSP spokesman Sgt. Josh Lawson says the most common reason children are left in a hot car is the parent or caregiver forgets they are there. KSP says a majority of parents believe they could never ‘forget’ about their child.
Trooper Lawson says look in the back seat before you lock. Make this a priority and a habit. Never leave a child in an unattended car, even with the windows down and make it a habit of opening the rear door of the car every time you park to ensure no one is left inside.
To enforce this habit, place an item that you can’t start your day without such as a purse, briefcase, employee badge or phone.
When at home, keep your vehicle locked at all times, even in the garage and never leave keys within reach of children. If a child is missing, immediately check the inside, floorboards and trunk of all vehicles in the area.
Anyone seeing a child left in a hot car should dial 911 immediately.