LOOK before you LOCK!

Did you know that it only takes 10 minutes for car to reach deadly temperature on an 80 degree day? Did you know that cracking car's windows does NOT slow down the heating process or decrease the maximum temperature?

In 2014, there were 32 children died from vehicular heatstroke. In 2015, there have been 8 deaths ( as of June 22, 2015) The inside of a vehicle heats up VERY quickly! The temperature inside a vehicle can reach 125 degrees in minutes. Children have died from heatstroke in cars in temperature as low as 60 degrees. Children have been inadvertently forgotten in hot vehicles or have gotten into the vehicle on their own.  This can happen to even the best of parents or caregivers!

TIPS TO REMEMBER:

• NEVER leave children alone in or around cars; not even for a minute.
• "Look Before You Lock"-  Get in a habit of opening the back door to check the back seat before leaving your car. Consider locking your car manually instead of using remote. 
• Place a reminder in the back seat, such as a car remote, wallet, handbag, employee ID, cell phone or even your shoes to remind yourself to check the back seat before leaving your car. Choose things that you typically take with you or that you can't do without.
• Put something on the dashboard such as a pacifier key chain to remind yourself that your baby are in the car with you.
• After a grocery shopping trip, bringing your baby inside the home before the groceries so you won't get distracted inside the house and forget about the baby.
• Asking your daycare provider to set up a system where they call you if you don't show up with your kids or haven't called in sick.
• Use drive-through services when available (dry cleaners, banks, restaurants, pharmacies,..) and pay for gas at the pump.

• Keep vehicles locked at all time, even in driveways and garages. Ask home visitors, childcare providers and neighbors to do the same. 
• Keep your keys out of reach of children so they can't get in the car by themselves. 
• When a child is missing, in addition to checking any body of water around the house, such as the backyard pool, also check inside your car and the trunk or any nearby vehicle, even if they are locked. A child may lock the car after entering the vehicle on their own but may not be able to unlock it.
• Be extra careful during busy time, schedule changes and period of crisis of holidays because this is when many tragedies occur!
• If you see a child alone in a car, call 911 and help make sure them get out quickly because you don't know how long they have been in the car. Even with the window cracked, it doesn't take long for a car to heat up to a temperature that kids get heat stroke.

Read more about kids and heatstroke here: http://www.kidsandcars.org/heatstroke.html