ABILENE, Texas — One of the features Texas is known for is it’s heat. With summer temperatures reaching the high 90s and even low 100s, it is important to make sure everyone– including children– stay safe in this heat.
According to the Texas Department of Family and Child Services (DFPS), following car crashes, heat stroke is leading cause of vehicle related death in children under the age of 15. Child Protective Services Specialist Ashley McNally spoke on the dangers of hot cars.
“Every year dozens of children under the age of three die after being left alone in a car. Texas is the leading state in the nation for child hot car deaths… that means from 1990 to 2021 there were 146 total deaths,” said McNally.
A child can suffer from a heat stroke inside a vehicle when the outside temperature is as low as 57 degrees. In Texas, leaving a child alone in a hot car is considered a Class C misdemeanor.
McNally told us what procedures follow if a child is alone in a hot car. She explained, “If law enforcement gets called to a scene like that more than likely cps does get called for an allegation called neglectful supervision which can open up an investigation with us.”
Texas DFPS gave us a few ways to help parents ensure no child is left in a hot car:
- Make it a habit for everyone to get out of the car, even if you’re only stopping for a moment.
- Always check the back seat before you get out of the car.
- Create reminders for yourself, such as putting your purse or phone in the back seat safely away from your child and keeping the diaper bag in the front seat beside you.
- If someone else drives your child, check in by phone or text to make sure your child arrives safely.
- Ask your child’s caregiver or babysitter to notify you any time your child is more than 10 minutes late arriving.
Sometimes children can gain access to cars when a parent or adult is not driving, such as during outside play. DFPS gave us these tips:
- Check the entire car and lock the doors before you step away from it.
- Keep car keys out of the reach of children so they can’t unlock the car on their own.
- Keep rear fold-down seats upright and secured to prevent a child from crawling into the trunk from inside the car.
- Make sure children know the car is not a play area. Teach them that the trunk or the inside of any car or truck should never be used for games like hide and seek.
If you see a child that is or suspected of being inside a hot vehicle, McNally advised that if you see something, say something. “Do not wait to see if somebody else calls don’t assume somebody else has called, you call 911 immediately and stay there until firefighters, ambulance, police– somebody shows up for that child.”
Nationally, there have been eight reports of child hot car deaths, one of which occurred in Texas. McNally explained that some parents will keep a stuffed animal in their child’s car seat when it is vacant, and then move it to the passenger side or front of the car when a child is present, so they remember to check the back of the vehicle before leaving.
For more tips on how to keep children safe in vehicles, click here.
