Key reminders to ensure child safety as temperatures rise in West Tennessee | #childsafety | #kids | #chldern | #parents | #schoolsafey

JACKSON, Tenn. — As temperatures rise, so does the dangers of leaving children in hot cars.

We learned more about the risks and steps you can take to ensure child safety.

A parked car can turn deadly in just minutes. Even on a mild day, the temperature inside a vehicle can soar, posing a serious risk to children left behind.

Matt Jones, EMS Division Chief with the Jackson Fire Department, tells us more about the dangers.

“Generally, this type of weather we have, every 10 minutes, there’s usually a 20 degree rise in temp. So, if it’s 90 degrees right now, in 10 minutes inside that car, it’s going to be 110 or higher,” said Jones.

According to the Tennessee Highway Safety Office, 39 children died nationally in 2024 due to vehicular heatstroke. That’s an average of one child every 10 days.

“Pediatrics are extremely dangerous because they can’t regulate the way that an adult can. Be very aware of your surroundings and try to remember that you have a child back there. I know we can get busy and things slip our minds,” said Jones.

According to Secretary of State Tre Hargett, in more than half of the national pediatric heatstroke deaths, it’s been proven that caregivers forgot the child was in the vehicle.

State officials urge parents to use the free “Baby in the Back” car hangtag program.

“It’s a visual reminder for parents and passersby to always check the backseat of a vehicle on a hot summer day, especially if one of these tags is hanging from the rearview mirror of a car,” said Hargett.

Since the programs launch, they have distributed almost 600,000 hangtags to help reduce heat-related vehicular deaths in children.

To learn more about how you can get a free ‘baby in the back’ hangtag, click here.

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